[:de]

Ein Film von Paul Schrader.

[Credits] [Termine] [Trailer]

Durch die Wiederaufführung des für Cannes frisch digi­ta­li­sier­tem Director‘s Cut des Regisseurs und Taxi-Driver-Autors Paul Schrader (zuletzt bei uns mit First Reformed) kön­nen wir uns ein neu­es Bild machen von sei­nem 1985 gedreh­ten fünf­ten Spielfilm. Damals war es ein Flop an der Kinokasse, war das Werk doch zu unkon­ven­tio­nell, zu eigen­wil­lig und viel­schich­tig. Das Biopic über Leben und vor allem Tod des berühm­ten, aber auch schrä­gen japa­ni­schen Schriftstellers Yukio Mishima, der sich in sei­nem Streben nach abso­lu­ter Schönheit in einen faschis­to­iden Ästhetizismus und einen Kult der Gewalt ver­stieg und schließ­lich 1970 ritu­el­len Selbstmord beging, ist „ein wich­ti­ger Versuch über das schwie­ri­ge Verhältnis zwi­schen Kunst und Leben, Ästhetik und Moral“ sagt das Lexikon des inter­na­tio­na­len Films.

[nbsp]
Credits:

JP/US 1985, 121 Min., Regie: Paul Schrader, mit: Ken Ogata, Masayuki Shionoya, Hiroshi Mikami, Junya Fukuda

Termine:

• noch kei­ne oder kei­ne mehr 

[nbsp]
Trailer:

 [:en]A film by Paul Schrader.

[Credits] [Termine] [Trailer]

The film sets in on November 25, 1970, the last day in Mishima’s life. He is shown finis­hing a manu­script. Then, he puts on a uni­form he desi­gned for hims­elf and meets with four of his most loy­al fol­lo­wers from his pri­va­te army.

In flash­backs high­light­ing epi­so­des from his past life, the view­er sees Mishima’s pro­gres­si­on from a sick­ly young boy to one of Japan’s most acclai­med wri­ters of the post-war era (who in adult­hood trains hims­elf into the acme of mus­cu­lar disci­pli­ne, owing to a mor­bid and mili­ta­ristic obses­si­on with mas­cu­li­ni­ty and phy­si­cal cul­tu­re). His loathing for the mate­ria­lism of modern Japan has him turn towards an extre­mist tra­di­tio­na­lism. He sets up his own pri­va­te army and pro­claims the rein­sta­ting of the emper­or as head of state.

The bio­gra­phi­cal sec­tions are inter­wo­ven with short dra­ma­tiza­ti­ons of three of Mishima’s novels: In The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, a stut­te­ring aspi­rant sets fire to the famous Zen Buddhist temp­le becau­se he feels infe­ri­or at the sight of its beau­ty. Kyoko’s House depicts the sado­ma­so­chi­stic (and ulti­m­ate­ly fatal) rela­ti­onship bet­ween a midd­le-aged woman and her young lover, who is in her finan­cial debt. In Runaway Horses, a group of young fana­tic natio­na­lists fails to over­throw the govern­ment, with its lea­der sub­se­quent­ly com­mit­ting sui­ci­de. Dramatizations, frame sto­ry, and flash­backs are seg­men­ted into the four chap­ters of the film’s title, named Beauty, Art, Action, and Harmony of Pen and Sword.

The film cul­mi­na­tes in Mishima and his fol­lo­wers taking hos­ta­ge a General of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. He addres­ses the garrison’s sol­diers, asking them to join him in his strugg­le to rein­sta­te the Emperor as the nation’s sove­reign. His speech is lar­ge­ly igno­red and ridi­cu­led. Mishima then returns to the General’s office and com­mits seppuku.

(wiki­pe­dia)

[nbsp]
Credits:

JP/US 1985, 121 Min., Regie: Paul Schrader, mit: Ken Ogata, Masayuki Shionoya, Hiroshi Mikami, Junya Fukuda

Termine:

• noch kei­ne oder kei­ne mehr 

[nbsp]
Trailer:

 [:]