In recent years I’ve seen a critical push to apply familiar terms like Film Noir to all manner of Japanese crime films made during the 1950s and 60s. The term has even been applied to the culturally specific Sun Tribe films (please see my previous post that discusses Sun Tribe films), Pink Films of an adult nature and the more experimental and political films that exemplify the Japanese New Wave. I don’t always agree with this “roping in” because it often limits our understanding of Japanese cinema which contains historical and cultural influences that often defy simplistic categorizations. But sometimes the term fits.
It’s worth remembering that after WW2 the Japanese film industry was largely controlled by the U.S. occupation forces and Japanese filmmakers faced immense pressure from American censors to make films that resembled Hollywood‘s own output at the time. And in postwar America Film Noir was thriving. The concentrated effort to destroy much of Japan’s cinematic history and modernize the country led to an onslaught of gun totting detectives, dangerous dames and cutthroat criminals in Japanese cinema that began replacing the sword wielding samurais, kimono clad ladies and gentle families that had previously populated the movies. Amid these changes filmmakers created their own distinct body of work that became more progresses and subversive after the American occupation ended. But the impact of Hollywood’s aggressively imposed influence is undeniable and in this postwar climate elements of Film Noir became deeply rooted within the Japanese film industry. One particularly striking example of this is Koreyoshi Kurahara’s I AM WAITING (1957), which makes its debut on TCM January 18th (1am PST/4am EST).
I AM WAITING opens on the dark damp docks of Yokohama where Jôji Shimaki (Yujiro Ishihara) is closing up his Reef Restaurant for the night. As he makes his way over derelict bridges and down twisty rain soaked streets to a postal box to mail off a letter, he spots a lovely dame (Mie Kitahara) standing by the water’s edge. She’s wet, tired and plainly distraught so kindly Jôji invites her back to his place where he offers her a drink and a warm meal. When the two start talking Jôji coaxes the woman into telling him her somber tale of woe and over the course of the film she eventually learns his solemn story as well. She’s a once proud opera star who is now forced to sing in dingy nightclubs after losing her voice while being pursued by all manner of lowlifes. He’s a one-time boxing champion who accidentally killed a man in a bar fight and was forced to go into the restaurant business. She’s lost all hope but Joji maintains a fragile optimism while waiting to hear from his older brother who traveled to Brazil a year ago in an attempt to buy some farmland where the two siblings could start a new life together. Unfortunately for Joji, his brother refuses to answer his letters and may have gone missing along with the family’s fortune. Is the beautiful melancholy girl that mysteriously walked into Joji’s life his salvation or his doom?
Japanese director Koreyoshi Kurahara was born in Borneo in the state of Sarawak, which was occupied by the British at the time making it a somewhat diverse and culturally rich location to grow up in. His family moved back to Japan during WW2 and Kurahara became interested in the film business early in life. While attending film classes at the Nihon University College of Art he met director Ishirō Honda (GODZILLA; 1954) and Honda introduced him to Kajiro Yamamoto (teacher, director and Akira Kurosawa’s mentor) who became his tutor. After graduating college, Kurahara went on to work at the Nikkatsu studios where he became an assistant director and eventually got the opportunity to make his own films. His impressive first full-length feature for Nikkatsu was I AM WAITING.
Viewers will easily spot the influence of early American as well as French Film Noir on I AM WAITING. From its jazz infused score by the brilliant Japanese composer Masaru Sato to the dark and shadow lined cinematography of Kurataro Takamura and the surprisingly gritty script by Shintaro Ishihara, almost all traces of old Japan are missing from the film. Signs seem to scream out their information in bold English letters (Reef Restaurant! Bar Keel!) and the characters all sport western clothing while drinking western beverages (Cognac! Coffee!). There are no kimonos or sake bottles in sight. Even the music and sports the main character’s favor (Opera over Enka and Boxing over Sumo) seem to suggest a very postwar western world where criminals are running amok and guns are easy to acquire.
Koreyoshi Kurahara’s film is a wonderful introduction to the amazing world of Japanese crime films that regular TCM viewers should appreciate. I only wish it was on at an earlier hour so more people would have a chance to see it but if you can’t stay up that late make sure to record it for a future watch. It airs right after Koreyoshi Kurahara’s much better known and highly regarded Sun Tribe film, THE WARPED ONES (1960). This aggressively stylish and daring follow-up to I AM WAITING helped kick start the Japanese New Wave and secured Kurahara’s position as one of the country’s most innovative filmmakers. If you tune into TCM Imports Sunday night you’re in for one helluva double feature. Tune in or (in the words of some of favorite Noir characters) I might have to bust your chops!
Further reading:
- Eclipse Series 17: Nikkatsu Noir By Chuck Stephens
- I Am Waiting By Peter Nellhaus