Films of Oshima Nagisa: Images of a Japanese Iconoclast

Rating:
Summary: Japan's Own
Review: Being the World Cinema buff that I am, I always ask my friends from other countries what their favorite film from their home countries is. Whenever I've asked a friend from Japan this question, they have unanimously responded by saying "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" by Oshima Nagisa. Here in the U.S., we are led to presume it would be Kurosawa Akira, but that isn't so. For some reason, Oshima's film about Japan's atrocities during World War II resonate more, if not with most Japanese, with the younger generation with whom I interact. Maureen Turim's book "The Films of Oshima Nagisa" proceeds to tell us why, reviewing beyond Oshima's major features to include his documentaries as well. Along the way, she presents the Eastern and Japanese specific references and influences in Oshima's work rather than assume that Oshima primarily looked to the West for his inspiration as is shown in the over-emphasis in Western reviews of the Brechtian influences and the parallels to Goddard. This book also provides a solid feminist critique of Oshima's films, again with respect to what Feminism means in Japan. This book has trully enhanced my appreciation of Oshima's films and I recommend it highly.