Teinosuke Kinugasa

 Teinosuke Kinugasa







A Page of Madness (1926)


Gate of Hell (1953)




RANKED:

3. Crossroads (1928)


Often cited as being the first Japanese film to be screened in Europe, "Crossroads" continues in Teinosuke Kinugasa's avant-garde filmmaking style. The film centers on a man who loses his sight in a battle with his courting rival. The rival then brutally rapes his sister after the attack. The film is regarded as being heavily influenced by German Expressionism, especially the films of Fritz Lang.




2. A Page of Madness (1926)


"A Page of Madness" is one of the few examples of films that come from the Japanese school of Shinkankakuha, or 'School of New Perceptions.' This avant-garde style approach to filmmaking allows the filmmakers to be incredibly creative in their visualizations. In "A Page of Madness," Teinosuke Kinugasa takes us through an insane asylum while its janitor desperately tries to reconcile with the loss of his inmate wife's sanity. Kinugasa superimposes images, warps them, and stretches them to their limit. His warped imagery parallels the madness of the patients, and more importantly, the despair felt by the protagonist.




1. Gate of Hell (1953)


At the height of Japan's golden age of cinema, Teinosuke Kinugasa made the first color film to be exported into international markets. The film tells the story of a samurai who relentlessly pursues a lady-in-waiting, despite knowing that she is married to another samurai. Kinugasa employs light, color, pattern, and visual aesthetics to employ poetic symbolism and transcend naturalism. The result is a visually marvelous film that slyly critiques the militarism of early twentieth-century Japan. Not only this, the film demonstrates the thin layer between order and disorder. Hidden underneath the lush tapestries and orderly aesthetics lies something darker. Because of this, disorder is constantly lurking underneath, whether it be the disorder of the self, disorder within the community, or disorder with the world at large. The gate of hell lies within all of us, ready and waiting to unravel the very fabric of order. 

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