The 1960s and 70s were fruitful periods for filmmaking in Japan, with many younger directors venting frustration at the outmoded social conventions still prevalent in their country. The result was a veritable goldmine of unique cult films. The Phoenix Cinema in London is showing a weekend of these films in February.
With the support of The Japan Foundation, Wild Japan is delighted to present six of the films on 35mm prints. The line-up includes 6 UK cinema premieres.
Fri 25 February 6.30pm SWORD OF DOOM / DAI BOSATSU TOGE Dir: Kihachi Okamoto, 1966 With Tatsuya Nakadai, Toshiro Mifune, Yuzo Kayama
One of the most thrilling and disturbing samurai epics ever made, Sword of Doom is both a mind-blowing art film and a superb action movie. At the centre of this brooding dissection of samurai culture is the spectacle of a soul going rotten in an era without values. It features a masterful, seething performance from Tatsuya Nakadai, breathtaking widescreen photography and a number of simply magisterial fight sequences. Okamoto's film maintains an iron grip throughout and culminates in a denouement of staggering bleakness and audacity. Sword of Doom haunts the imagination long after the final credits have rolled. "Exceptional camerawork, acting and music... Narratively sophisticated and haemorrhaging martial arts violence at every turn... Packs a wallop." Kungfucinema.com
Sat 26 February 3.30pm SCHOOL OF THE HOLY BEAST / SEI JU GAKUEN Dir: Norifumi Suzuki, 1974 With Yumi Takigawa, Emiko Yamauichi, Yayoi Watanabe
Until you see School Of The Holy Beast, you couldn't believe that such a film existed. In what plays like a bawdy version of Sam Fuller's Shock Corridor, a young woman enters a convent to investigate the mysterious death of her mother, only to discover a smorgasbord of vice. An unholy mix of sex, comedy, drugs, flagellation, horror and political commentary is amazingly fused in one of the most outrageous movies in cinema history. As a footnote, it's also one of the most visually beautiful films ever made. Truly excessive and absolutely wild. "A shocking, subversive masterpiece - Dario Argento meets the Marquis De Sade." American Cinematheque
Sat 26 February 6.30 STREET MOBSTER / GENDAI YAKUZA : HITO-KIRI YOTA) Dir: Kenji Fukasaku, 1972 With Bunta Sugawara, Noburo Ando, Mayumi Nagisa
Street Mobster features a demonic performance from Isamu Okita as an individualistic yakuza who returns to his old stomping ground after a stint in jail. His insanely uncompromising stance sets him on a collision course with everything and everyone. In a film that begins at 100mph and then proceeds to accelerate, Kenji (Battle Royale) Fukasaku pushes cinematic style to breaking point in a frenzy of breathless, hyper-stylish action. Street Mobster marked the beginning of a new breed of 70s yakuza movies and the birth of a style that was to later influence cult favourites John Woo and Takashi Miike. An unbridled energy fizzes from the screen. "The combination of Bunta Sugawara's fiery performance, alternating between playful punk and terrifying monster in a heartbeat, and Fukasaku's newfound command of technique makes Street Mobster a work pulsating with vitality and defiance." Patrick Macias, Tokyoscope
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