Simplicity and Naturalness: Private Space and Public Space in Films of Mizoguchi and Ozu
Abstract
The author focuses on the work of Kenji Mizoguchi and Yasujirö Ozu, taking up the issue of mise en scene. He notes that the specific interior design, characterised by refined simplicity so different from European interiors, is a factor determining the nature of the movie image in the works of both of these directors. This applies both to private and public spaces. In his discussion Loska abstracts from stereotypical notions of Orientalism, and tracks the presence of certain principles of mise en scene in the structuring methods and compositions of the movie frame, that are to some extent conditioned by the stage design and iconography. Loska analyses these issues using the following films as examples: Late Spring (Banshun, 1949), A Story of Floating Weeds (Ukigusa monogatari, 1934) and Tokyo Twilight (Tokyo boshoku, 1957) by Ozu and Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (Zangiku monogatari, 1939) and Miss Oyu (Öyu sama, 1951 ) by Mizoguchi. Loska argues that the search for simplicity and nature present in these films reflects deeper philosophical and moral principles that govern Japanese society. According to Loska both directors use architecture not only in order to refer to tradition, but also as an element of frame design.
Keywords:
Kenji Mizoguchi, Yasujirō Ozu, Japanese cinemaReferences
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Authors
Krzysztof Loskakwartalnik.filmowy@ispan.pl
Jagiellonian University Poland
Profesor Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego, dyrektor Instytutu Sztuk Audiowizualnych UJ; zajmuje się filmem japońskim i kulturą współczesną. Opubli kował pracę poświęconą Marshallowi McLuhanowi (Dziedzictwo McLuhana. Między nowoczesnością a ponowoczesnością /2001/), monografie Alfreda Hitchcocka (Hitchcock - autor wśród gatunków /2002/) oraz Atoma Egoyana (Tożsamość i media /2006/). Wspólnie z Andrzejem Pitrusem napisał książkę David Cronenberg: rozpad ciała, rozpad gatunku (2003). Wydał także Poetykę filmu japońskiego (2009), monografię Kenji Mizoguchi i wyobraźnia melodramatyczna (2012) oraz zbiór tekstów Adaptacje literatury japońskiej (2012).
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