'BOBTAIL' REVIEW / JAPANESE FILMS

Maiden Bridge (1936)

Tokyo University Press recently published “Propaganda Films in Colonial Taiwan: Research on Newly Discovered Films (植民地期台湾の映画)“. This is a book plus 2-DVD box set. Texts are academic research articles on propaganda films in Taiwan under Japanese colonial rule (1895 – 1945), particularly during the fifteen year war (1930 – 1945). DVDs contain rare films found in Taiwan in 2005, including entertainment films, animations, and documentaries during this era. Some of them are, as I understand, only existing copies of the particular titles. “Maiden Bridge” is one of the entertainment films included in the DVD.

 
'BOBTAIL' REVIEW / JAPANESE FILMS

The Snow Flurry (1959)

“The Snow Flurry (1959)” may be one of the lesser known works among Keisuke Kinoshita’s filmography, but gives its audience ultimately satisfying experience. It experiments with a bold and complex flashback structure, which is firmly rooted in the emotional journey of the protagonists. The audience is guided through sometimes parallel, sometimes intersecting psychological paths of the disintegrating members of the family as if the cinematic lens has become an entity of flow of consciousness.

 
'BOBTAIL' REVIEW / JAPANESE FILMS

Policeman’s Diary (1955)

Nikkatsu had been in turmoil for more than a decade. The studio had lost its production unit in 1942, and the business had been in shambles. Kyuusaku Hori, CEO of the company, tried to rebuild the business by investing in the areas other than movie business such as hotels, real state development, and entertainment management. However, there were lots of people who wanted Nikkatsu to do what it was supposed to do. Making movies. In 1954, Nikkatsu opened its new studio in Chofu, Tokyo and restarted the film production. The studio is still in operation today, even though it is …