Match Cut Directors Consensus - Kenji Mizoguchi

[dreamdead]

Welcome to year 4 of the MCDC, where we finally pay tribute to the last of Japan's Big Three directors of the '40s-'60s with Kenji Mizoguchi. Please rate his films from earliest to most recent, and feel free to discuss any qualities of his work that might start discussion.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Kenji_Mizoguchi_1.jpg/180px-Kenji_Mizoguchi_1.jpg

[Pop Trash]

Ugetsu -8

[Raiders]

Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (1939) 8.5
The 47 Ronin (1941) 6.5
Life of Oharu (1952) 9.0
Ugetsu (1953) 10.0
Sansho the Bailiff (1954) 9.5

[Boner M]

The Life of Oharu - 8 (watching again this week, tho)
Ugetsu - 7.5
Sansho the Bailiff - 10
Taira Clan Saga - 5

[Raiders]

The Life of Oharu - 8 (watching again this week, tho)

Great.


Ugetsu - 7.5

This too plskthx.

[Yxklyx]

The Story of the Late Chrysanthemum - 8
Ugetsu - 7
Sansho the Bailiff - 6

[Grouchy]

Ugetsu - 8

[Mysterious Dude]

Osaka Elegy - 7.5
Sisters of the Gion - 7
The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums - 7.5
The 47 Ronin - 6.5
Women of the Night - 8.5
The Life of Oharu - 9.5
Ugetsu - 10
Sansho the Bailiff - 8.5
Street of Shame - 9

[Derek]

Osaka Elegy - 7.0
Sisters of the Gion - 6.5
The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums - 9.0
The 47 Ronin - 8.5
The Life of Oharu - 9.0
Ugetsu - 9.5
A Geisha - 8.5
Sansho the Bailiff - 10.0
The Crucified Lovers - 7.0
Princess Yang Kwei Fei - 7.5
Street of Shame - 5.5

[Spinal]

Ugetsu - 9

[Qrazy]

The Life of Oharu - 7.5
Ugetsu - 9.5
A Geisha - 7
Sansho the Bailiff - 9
Street of Shame - 7

I think I've seen one other... maybe Sisters of the Gion... I don't know. A Geisha, Street of Shame and the other one I've seen all blended together.

[Stay Puft]

The Life of Oharu - 8
Ugetsu - 8

[Philosophe_rouge]

Ugetsu 7.5
Street of Shame 8.5

[soitgoes...]

Poking my head in to post this:

Oyuki, the Virgin (1935) - 6.0
Osaka Elegy (1936) - 8.5
Sisters of the Gion (1936) - 7.5
The 47 Ronin (1941) - 7.0
Miss Oyu (1951) - 6.5
The Lady from Musashino (1951) - 8.0
The Life of Oharu (1952) - 8.5
Ugetsu (1953) - 8.0
The Crucified Lovers (1954) - 9.0
Sansho the Bailiff (1954) - 9.0
The Woman in the Rumor (1954) - 7.0
Princess Yang Kwei-fei (1955) - 7.0
Street of Shame (1956) - 6.5

[dreamdead]

Osaka Elegy - 7
Ugetsu - 9
Sansho the Bailiff - 9.5

[Weeping_Guitar]

The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums - 7
Women of the Night - 5
The Life of Oharu - 8
Ugetsu - 9
Sansho the Bailiff - 8

[EyesWideOpen]

Sansho the Baliff - 9.5

[B-side]

Ugetsu- 7

[Eleven]

The Song of Home (1925) - 6.0
Tokyo March (1929) - 6.5
Osaka Elegy (1936) - 8.0
The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (1939) - 9.0
Utamaro and His Five Women (1946) - 7.5
The Life of Oharu (1952) - 8.5
Ugetsu monogatari (1953) - 10.0
A Geisha (1953) - 7.5
Sansho the Bailiff (1954) - 9.5
Princess Yang Kwei Fei (1955) - 7.5
Street of Shame (1956) - 8.0

Might get to Sisters of the Gion before the week is out.

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

Ugetsu - 8.5
Sansho the Baliff - 10

need to see more

[Duncan]

Ugetsu - 9.0
Sansho the Bailiff - 8.0

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

It's funny that maybe the formative point in Mizoguchi's career and artistic tendencies was when he was stabbed by a prostitute early in his career.

[Llopin]

Osaka Elegy - 7
The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums - 9.5
The 47 Ronin - 8
Utamaro and His Five Women - 7
The Lady of Musashino - 7.5
The Life of Oharu - 8.5
Ugetsu - 9
The Crucified Woman - 8.5
Sansho the Bailiff - 9
The Crucified Lovers - 8
Empress Yang Kuei-Fei - 6.5
Street of Shame - 8

[dreamdead]

Osaka Elegy is diminutive filmmaking from Mizoguchi considering the films he would direct later in his career. Though I like seeing him work within a contemporary palette in terms of narrative, this time period lacks the grandeur of his two masterpieces, and the story feels somehow slight and pedestrian. Further, his visual flourishes are kept to a minimum and the roving camera tracking shots are repressed in favor of a more perfunctory documenting filmic style, which places even greater attention on the narrative. And the continued subject of studying how a masculine-centered society reinforces its patriarchal authority and punishes women for their failings, even if men pushed women into those scenarios, are certainly worthy of continued study. But little here feels truly in command, as things never become boring or masterful, but just feel "there"...

[dreamdead]

Results:
Sansho the Bailiff – 8.9642 (14)
Ugetsu – 8.6052 (19)
The Life of Oharu – 8.45 (10)
Story of the Late Chrysanthemums – 8.3571 (7)
Street of Shame – 7.5 (7)
Osaka Elegy – 7.4 (5)
47 Ronin – 7.3 (5)
Princess Yang Kwei-Fei – 7.125 (4)
Overall: 7.9627

Did not Qualify:
The Crucified Lovers – 8 (3)
The Crucified Woman – 8 (1)
The Lady from Musashino – 7.75 (2)
A Geisha – 7.6667 (3)
Utamaro and His Five Women – 7.25 (2)
Sisters of the Gion – 7 (3)
The Woman in the Rumor – 7 (1)
Woman of the Night – 6.75 (2)
Tokyo March – 6.5 (1)
Miss Oyu – 6.5 (1)
The Song of Home – 6 (1)
Oyuki, the Virgin – 6 (1)
Taira Clan Saga – 5 (1)

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