History of Postwar Japan as Told by a Bar Hostess | |
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Directed by | Shōhei Imamura |
Screenplay by | Shōhei Imamura |
Produced by |
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Starring |
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Cinematography | Masao Tochikawa} |
Edited by |
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Music by | Haruo Ibe |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Toho |
Release date |
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Running time | 105 minutes[1][2] |
Country | Japan |
History of Postwar Japan as Told by a Bar Hostess (にっぽん戦後史 マダムおんぼろの生活, Nippon sengoshi – Madamu Onboro no seikatsu) is a 1970 Japanese documentary film by director Shōhei Imamura.[1][2][3]
Synopsis
[edit]Director Shōhei Imamura interviews Emiko Akaza, the bar hostess of the film's title, who reflects on her life as a prostitute and madam in post-war Yokosuka and comments on news reel footage of Japan's history from 1945 to the present.
Production
[edit]After the poor box-office performance of his ambitious 1968 film, The Profound Desire of the Gods, Imamura decided to undertake a more modestly budgeted film. Characteristically, Imamura seeks to investigate an alternative interpretation of recent Japanese history through the eyes of a person living in the lower strata of that society.[4]
Beginning with this film, Imamura was to spend the next decade working in the documentary format. He returned to purely fictional narrative with Vengeance is Mine (1979).[4]
Release
[edit]History of Postwar Japan as Told by a Bar Hostess was released in Japan 3 June 1970 where it was distributed by Toho. The film was shown in Los Angeles in 1998 with any earlier American release being undetermined.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Galbraith IV, Stuart (2008). The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography. Scarecrow Press. pp. 267–268. ISBN 978-1461673743.
- ^ a b c "にっぽん戦後史 マダムおんぼろの生活 (Nippon sengoshi: Madamu onboro no seikatsu)" (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
- ^ "にっぽん戦後史 マダムおんぼろの生活 (Nippon sengoshi: Madamu onboro no seikatsu)" (in Japanese). Kinenote. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
- ^ a b Sharp, Jasper. "History of Postwar Japan as Told by a Bar Hostess". Midnight Eye. Archived from the original on 12 June 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2021.