4 out of 5. Masaki Kobayashi's THE HUMAN CONDITION 1-3 was a masterfully done almost 10 hour epic telling the tale of a pacifist in totalitarian Japan during WWII. The cinematography was gorgeous and the acting was fantastic. You follow the main character Kaji, played by Tatsuya Nakadai (of SAMURAI REBELLION) as he's given a job in a mining town after marrying the love his life. He doesn't want to run things the way his bosses want him to. It's a clash of ideals and he spends most of the film trying to keep the humanity of his men in tact while almost losing his. Having to watch it in 2 hour chunks a night, made it feel quite episodic and gave one much food for thought. Highly recommended.
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5 out of 5. THE BURMESE HARP by Kon Ichikawa
was a surprising film. There's a lot going on here and the backdrop of
Burma is well-suited to it. The male chorale aspect of the film is both
haunting and uplifting. I'm not a fan of
musicals but this was incredibly effective. The lone character of
Mizushima, the harp player was the antithesis of change brought on by
the conflicts of war. But how he changes is really intriguing and the
way Ichikawa films it is quite masterful. If you like the Apu trilogy or
Frank Capra films, you will totally dig this. Try not to weep too much.
;)
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4 out of 5. Melville's ARMY OF SHADOWS is an
intriguing approach to storytelling that challenges convention. The POVs
shift from character to character as we become familiar with the ranks
of the French Resistance. Melville uses a lot of push-in/pull back
focusing which was prevalent for the time. The cinematography is
stunning.
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