Kaizo Hayashi’s To Sleep So As To Dream (1968) will be available on Blu-ray March 22nd from Arrow Video.
Two private detectives hunt for an actress trapped within the reel of a silent ninja film in the dreamlike debut of Kaizo Hayashi, a magical double-handed cinephilic homage to the movie worlds of the 1910s and 1950s.
When private eye Uotsuka and his sidekick Kobayashi are approached by an aged former actress, Madame Cherryblossom, to go in search of her kidnapped daughter Bellflower, their investigations lead them to the studios of the mysterious M. Pathe company. Here Uotsuka has a strange vision in which he comes face to face with the beautiful star of a 1915 chanbara film that appears to have no ending. From then on, things begin to get a little strange…
Among the most impressive and critically regarded Japanese films of the 1980s, To Sleep so as To Dream...
Two private detectives hunt for an actress trapped within the reel of a silent ninja film in the dreamlike debut of Kaizo Hayashi, a magical double-handed cinephilic homage to the movie worlds of the 1910s and 1950s.
When private eye Uotsuka and his sidekick Kobayashi are approached by an aged former actress, Madame Cherryblossom, to go in search of her kidnapped daughter Bellflower, their investigations lead them to the studios of the mysterious M. Pathe company. Here Uotsuka has a strange vision in which he comes face to face with the beautiful star of a 1915 chanbara film that appears to have no ending. From then on, things begin to get a little strange…
Among the most impressive and critically regarded Japanese films of the 1980s, To Sleep so as To Dream...
- 3/11/2022
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
In the mid-1960s, Seijun Suzuki would go on to make a trilogy of features, now called the “Flesh Trilogy”, that would depict a degraded post-war Japan and people’s poor living standards in it. These depictions were put forth in the form of stories that featured women that trade in their own flesh. The first of these would be “Gate of Flesh”, a production based on a novel by Taijiro Tamura that would go on to stand tall as one of the best in Suzuki’s fantastic and lengthy oeuvre.
Heavily bombed, post-war Tokyo is a dog-eat-dog city where a living is hard to come by and people are still exploited on a daily basis. The city lies in ruin and so do the lives of its inhabitants. In one such bombed building live five prostitutes, all working without any support from any males and taking...
Heavily bombed, post-war Tokyo is a dog-eat-dog city where a living is hard to come by and people are still exploited on a daily basis. The city lies in ruin and so do the lives of its inhabitants. In one such bombed building live five prostitutes, all working without any support from any males and taking...
- 3/5/2021
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Creating a film that looks like a silent one but actually is not and having a narrative that is a pastiche of elements that includes tribute to the film noir of the 1920s, comedy, and a repeated breaking of the fourth wall is not exactly an easy task. However, this is exactly what Kaizo Hayashi accomplished with “To Sleep so as to Dream”, in an effort that netted him awards from Mainichi Film Concours and Yokohama Film Festival (also for Takeo Kimura’s art direction).
The story takes place somewhere in the 50s, and revolves around the disappearance of Bellflower, the daughter of Madame Cherrysblossom, an aging silent film actress. The Madame tasks her elderly butler with finding her, and he gives the job to two detectives, egg-swallowing Uotsuka and his assistant, Kobayashi, who soon proves to be a master of martial arts apart from constantly aloof. The trio is immediately contacted by the kidnappers,...
The story takes place somewhere in the 50s, and revolves around the disappearance of Bellflower, the daughter of Madame Cherrysblossom, an aging silent film actress. The Madame tasks her elderly butler with finding her, and he gives the job to two detectives, egg-swallowing Uotsuka and his assistant, Kobayashi, who soon proves to be a master of martial arts apart from constantly aloof. The trio is immediately contacted by the kidnappers,...
- 9/29/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Arrow Video restores a rare title from director Yasuharu Hasebe with his sophomore directorial effort, Massacre Gun. A late 60’s yakuza narrative, the film displays Hasebe’s influence of American film noir, but defined by a striking amount of violence that makes it feel ahead of its time despite a familiar premise. Fans of genre icon Jo Shishido should be especially excited for this restoration, and it bodes well as a reconsideration for the work of Hasebe, a once prominent name that’s fallen into relative obscurity in cinematic conversations.
Ryuichi Shishido (Jo Shishido) is a mob hitman ordered to execute his lover. He follows through with the tasking but is visibly bothered by it, causing his younger brother, Saburo (Jiro Okazaki), an aspiring boxer, to directly challenge the dreaded mob boss Akazawa (Takashi Kanda). For his hubris, Saburo is badly beaten, leading his older brothers Ryuichi and Eiji (Tatsuya Fuji...
Ryuichi Shishido (Jo Shishido) is a mob hitman ordered to execute his lover. He follows through with the tasking but is visibly bothered by it, causing his younger brother, Saburo (Jiro Okazaki), an aspiring boxer, to directly challenge the dreaded mob boss Akazawa (Takashi Kanda). For his hubris, Saburo is badly beaten, leading his older brothers Ryuichi and Eiji (Tatsuya Fuji...
- 4/14/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Stars: Jô Shishido, Kôji Nanbara, Isao Tamagawa, Anne Mari, Mariko Ogawa, Hiroshi Minami | Written by Hachiro Guryu, Takeo Kimura | Directed by Seijun Suzuki
Writing movie reviews opens up a world that is full of films that I probably would never have had the chance to see. Branded to Kill (Koroshi no rakuin) is one of these and Arrow Video have taken the movie and given it their usual excellent treatment, providing a chance to see it in its best form.
The story revolves around a hit-man who is ranked three with a fetish for sniffing boiling rice. When he fails at his latest job the woman who paid for the hit comes into conflict with him, pushing him into a fight consumed with her own death wish. Finding that his wife also now wants to kill him for his failure and the number one ranked hit-man known as the Phantom...
Writing movie reviews opens up a world that is full of films that I probably would never have had the chance to see. Branded to Kill (Koroshi no rakuin) is one of these and Arrow Video have taken the movie and given it their usual excellent treatment, providing a chance to see it in its best form.
The story revolves around a hit-man who is ranked three with a fetish for sniffing boiling rice. When he fails at his latest job the woman who paid for the hit comes into conflict with him, pushing him into a fight consumed with her own death wish. Finding that his wife also now wants to kill him for his failure and the number one ranked hit-man known as the Phantom...
- 8/20/2014
- by Paul Metcalf
- Nerdly
Confessions, Villain, 13 Assassins, and the other winners of the 2011 Japan Academy Prize have been announced. The 34th Annual Japan Academy Prize, “often called the Japan Academy Awards or the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series of awards given annually since 1978 by the Nippon Academy-sho Association for Excellence in Japanese Film. Award categories are similar to the Academy Awards.” The award ceremony was held on February 18, 2011 at the New Takanawa Prince Hotel in Tokyo. The full listing of the 2011 Japan Academy Prize winners is below.
Picture of the Year
Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Animation of the Year
Kari-gurashi no Arietti (The Borrowers)
Director of the Year
Tetsuya Nakashima, Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Screenplay of the Year
Tetsuya Nakashima, Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Satoshi Tsumabuki, Akunin (Villain)
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Eri Fukatsu, Akunin (Villain)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Akira Emoto,...
Picture of the Year
Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Animation of the Year
Kari-gurashi no Arietti (The Borrowers)
Director of the Year
Tetsuya Nakashima, Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Screenplay of the Year
Tetsuya Nakashima, Kokuhaku (Confessions)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Satoshi Tsumabuki, Akunin (Villain)
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Eri Fukatsu, Akunin (Villain)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Akira Emoto,...
- 2/19/2011
- by filmbook
- Film-Book
The third and final entry in the Nikkatsu Action retrospective at this year’s Fantasia Festival, Gangster VIP reunites director Toshio Masuda, star Tetsuya Watari and production designer Takeo Kimura from Velvet Hustler but the two films could scarcely be more different. Where Hustler was a light, playful film Gangster VIP is a much darker piece, one revolving around a man consumed by his circumstances, fully aware that his lifestyle will consume everyone around him and forced by his conscience to therefore shun any sort of “decent” relationships so that only those who somehow deserve it will be in the line of fire. Based loosely on the story of real life gangster Goro Fujita, Gangster VIP casts Watari as a sort of noble outcast, someone forced by poverty into a life of crime but also someone who has managed to retain a sense of honor and who recognizes fully that...
- 7/15/2008
- by Todd Brown
- Screen Anarchy
Goro likes a simple life. The big city. Fast cars. Faster women. That’s all it takes to keep the carefree young man happy. Put him behind the wheel of a car and he has not a care in the world, whistling on his way to work. That the car is stolen and Goro works as a hitman seem almost secondary, secondary that is until Goro draws the task of killing the head of an opposing crime family and then must hide in Kobe - to his point of view a backwards, vulgar place with nothing worthwhile to do. Not to worry, he’s told, it shouldn’t be a long stay. The family will take care of things here and when everything is settled Goro will be free to return.
This is the world of Velvet Hustler, a surprisingly light hearted and carefree crime romp from director Toshio Masuda...
This is the world of Velvet Hustler, a surprisingly light hearted and carefree crime romp from director Toshio Masuda...
- 7/13/2008
- by Todd Brown
- Screen Anarchy
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