Jump to content

Tamizō Ishida

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tamizō Ishida
Born(1901-06-07)7 June 1901
Died1 October 1972(1972-10-01) (aged 71)
NationalityJapanese
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter
Years active1926–1947

Tamizō Ishida (石田民三, Ishida Tamizō, 7 June 1901 – 1 October 1972) was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.[1][2][3] He is most noted for his 1938 historical drama film Fallen Blossoms, which is now regarded as one of the outstanding works of 1930s Japanese cinema.[1][4]

Biography

[edit]

Ishida was born in Masuda (now Yokote), Akita Prefecture, Japan.[3][4] He gave his directing debut at Toa Kinema in 1926, specialising in chanbara (sword fight) films,[1][4] the majority of which are regarded as lost.[1] In the mid-1930s, Ishida made himself a name with literary adaptations, often in collaboration with the Bungakuza theatre troupe,[1] and films with female casts.[4] Nowadays, his films set in entertainment districts are regarded as his standout works,[4] most notably the 1938 Fallen Blossoms, a formally innovative film about the inhabitants of a Kyoto geisha house in the late Edo period.[1][4] Other notable films of the era include Yoru no hato (1937), Mukashi no uta and Hanatsumi nikki (both 1939), Keshōyuki (1940, based on a story by Mikio Naruse) and Asagiri gunka (1943).[1][4] After the end of World War II, Ishida directed only one more film before his early retirement from film business, instead running a teahouse with his wife in Kamishichiken, Kyoto.[4]

Selected filmography

[edit]
  • 1927: Keyamura Rokusuke (毛谷村六助)
  • 1927: Date hiroku: Matsumae Tetsunosuke (伊達秘録 松前鉄之助) partially extant film
  • 1934: Osen (おせん) partially extant film
  • 1937: Hanabi no machi (花火の街)
  • 1937: Yoru no hato (夜の鳩)
  • 1938: Fallen Blossoms (Hana chirinu)
  • 1939: Mukashi no uta (むかしの歌)
  • 1939: Hanatsumi nikki (花つみ日記)
  • 1940: Keshōyuki (化粧雪)
  • 1943: Asagiri gunka (あさぎり軍歌)
  • 1947: En wa ina mono (縁は異なもの)

Legacy

[edit]

In 2022, the National Film Archive of Japan presented a small retrospective in commemoration of Ishida with seven of his films.[4] Fallen Blossoms was screened at the Il Cinema Ritrovato Festival in 2017[5] and included in the British Film Institute's The best Japanese film of every year – from 1925 to now list.[6]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Jacoby, Alexander (2008). Critical Handbook of Japanese Film Directors: From the Silent Era to the Present Day. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press. ISBN 978-1-933330-53-2.
  2. ^ "石田民三". Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese). Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b "石田民三". Kinenote (in Japanese). Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i "東宝の90年 モダンと革新の映画史(1)". National Film Archive of Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Hana chirinu". Il Cinema Ritrovato. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  6. ^ "The best Japanese film of every year – from 1925 to now". British Film Institute. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
[edit]