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July 25, 2013 |
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Japanese 16mm Film "The Tale of Genji"
@Japan Information Center Gallery
Monday, July 29, 3:00PM - |
| 1. Date & Time |
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Monday, July 29th, 3:00pm-
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| 2. Place |
Japan Information Center Gallery,
Consulate General of Japan in New York
299 Park Avenue, (Bet. 48th & 49th St.), 18th Floor,
New York, NY 10171
Tel: 212-371-8222 |
| 3. Admission |
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No registration required & free of charge (Photo ID required & seats are limited)
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| 4. Genji Monogatari ( The Tale of Genji ) |
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Genji Monogatari, thought to be the world's oldest novel was written at the beginning of the 11th century by Murasaki Shikibu, a female writer in the Imperial court, portrayed in the middle of the 10th century and in regards to its delicacy of psychological depictions, can be compared to the works of Marcel Ploust. However, it was not until 1951 that the screen version of this story was attempted for the first time. This was because the film adaptation of the romances within the Imperial court was prohibited up until the end of World War II in 1945. As a result, Kimisaburo Yoshimura, the director, and his staff members exerted considerable effort in order to reproduce the manners and customs of that time with the utmost accuracy. As this age had not as yet been portrayed in films and dramas, it was felt that there were too many unknowns in describing them properly. In this sense, this was an extremely ambitious, trailblazing work of a pioneer.
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| 5. Story |
This is a story that takes place when the Kyoto civilization is in full bloom, some 1,000 years ago.
Among several court-ladies, Lady Kiritsubo enjoys the Emperor's deepest affection. Therefore, she is envied by all the other ladies, especially by the Princess of Kokiden Palace, who has the most powerful political background of the day. She is worried, becomes ill, and decides to retire from court service. Her plea is granted, and she retires.
At her own house, Lady Kiritsubo gives birth to a beautiful baby boy, whom she names Prince Hikaru, meaning Prince Shining, because his face and appearance are so brightly beautiful. Then, before the Prince comes of age, Lady Kiritsubo dies, painfully worried about the future of her son. The Emperor is sorrowful hearing of her death. He wants to make the young Prince happy, so he lowers the young prince's status to that of a subject, for he thinks in that way the boy will be able to escape jealousy and be happy, so long as the boy has no political background. He grants a family name of Genji to the boy. Hence, the young boy is called by others either as Prince Hikaru or Prince Genji.
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For more details, please visit our website. |
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| 6. Characters |
Prince Hikaru (Kazuo Hasegawa), Lady Fujitsubo (Michiyo Kogure), Lady Awaji (Machiko Kyo), Lady Aoi (Mitsuko Mito), Lady Murasaki (Nobuko Otowa), Yoshinari (Yuji Hori), Lady Priest Baron Harima (Denjiro Okochi), Oborozukiyo (Yumiko Hasegawa), Lady Kiritsubo (Chieko Soma), Prince Hikaru as a Child (Koichi Kakeida)
Directed by Kimisaburo Yoshimura
Produced by Daiei Film in 1951
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