A poet burns bright, dies young, and leaves Japan forever changed. Bring tissues.
1962 Japanese movie
Acting
Kōjirō Hongō embodies raw, trembling desperation.
Cinematography
Shadow-drenched Meiji-era streets like ink washes.
Score
Sparse traditional instrumentation that haunts.
Director
Kōji Shima
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Takuboku Ishikawa revolutionized Japanese poetry with his free verse tanka; this film was made on the 50th anniversary of his death.
Director Kōji Shima was blacklisted during WWII for 'unpatriotic' films; this was his comeback, dripping with personal understanding of artistic sacrifice.
JP
