ACF 691: Masahiro Shinoda film sidebar at New York Film Festival 2010

(c) Mineko Orisaku

The 48th New York Film Festival will be featuring a sidebar series entitled "NYFF MASTERWORKS: Elegant Elegies: The Films of Masahiro Shinoda." The series will run from Saturday, September 25th through Sunday, October 10th, 2010. Here's a brief statement from The Film Society of Lincoln Center:

Gamblers betting it all in games they can’t win, samurais heading into their final battles, lovers realizing their bonds are no match for an uncaring destiny: Welcome to the remarkable universe of Masahiro Shinoda. A spectacular filmmaker key to the Japanese New Wave, Shinoda was fascinated by both traditional Japanese aesthetics and the modernity of cinema. We’re honored to welcome Mr. Shinoda to this year’s festival for this special tribute, presented as part of the 150th Anniversary Celebration of Japan-NYC Friendship.

For info about the series, including descriptions of all the films to be screened, showtimes & dates, and to purchase tickets online, click here. Among those thirteen movies that will be shown, I have seen Double Suicide and Samurai Spy. Both are great movies, and are available on typically outstanding Criterion DVDs for those who can't make it to Lincoln Center.

ACF 236: Double Suicide screens at 7:30 tomorrow night @ Japan Society

Double Suicide / Shinju ten no Amijima

Directed by Masahiro Shinoda

Japan, 1969, 103 min.

Japan Society's Shinjuku Ecstasy Film Series continues tomorrow with Shinoda's visually stunning Double Suicide. I've only had the opportunity to watch some of it so far, but the story is fascinating and some of the compositions are absolutely breath-taking.

Further info follows below, but let me say now that I'm going to put up as many posts as I can about this series. The films featured are ones that I think most readers of AsianCineFest would at least be interested in knowing about, even if they can't make it to the screenings. Some of these films are already available on DVD. Double Suicide, for example, has been available as a Criterion release for some time now. So I urge you to see them at Japan Society if you can, at another venue if the opportunity arises, or on DVD as a last resort.

Description:
In this brilliant modernist adaptation of Monzaemon Chikamatsu’s famous 1720 bunraku puppet play about the doomed romance of a married merchant and a courtesan, Shinoda’s direction is perfectly matched by Toru Takemitsu's music and Kiyoshi Awazu's arresting sets.

All screenings are at Japan Society, 333 East 47th Street (between 1st and 2nd Avenues), New York, NY 10017

Shinjuku Ecstasy series webpage
Double Suicide webpage
Direct link to order Double Suicide tickets