Kaneto Shindō’s Onibaba,through its stark portrayal of the animalistic side of human life, engages with the questions of sin and evil. ‘Onibaba’ are women who have turned to demons as a result of negative karma. As the retelling of a popular mythological tale, the film inverts the traditional story of the ‘onibaba’ or demon hag who is punished by the Buddha for thwarting a young girl’s spiritual ambitions.Kichi’s old mother and widowed wife live by ambushing warriors and selling their armour and samurai swords in return for the luxury of a few sacks of millet. A conflict of interests develops between the two women when Hachi, a friend of Kichi’s, returns from the battlefield to seek asylum in the old woman’s hut and the young woman transgresses …show more content…
For instance, here the onibaba is one who tries to intimidate her daughter-in-law into subservience and filial piety by constant reminders of the wrath of the Buddha that lascivious women have to endure. The plot revolves around two women inhabiting a swampland, an old woman and her daughter-in-law, played by Nobuko Otowa and Jitsuko Yoshimura respectively. Driven by the fear of destitution, they hide in the long grass, pounce upon Samurai deserters, murder them and strip their bodies of valuable armour and other adornments to sell to a hoarder in exchange for food.The setting of the movie is the war-torn 14th-century Japan. The menfolk have been conscripted to fight in a brutal war, with heavy losses on either side. The battle referenced here is the Battle of Minatogawa which occurred on 25 May 1336 between the forces of Emperor Go-Daigo and those of the Ashikaga Takauji in which Takauji razed to the groundGo-Daigo’s forces. It is to be understood that Kichi and Hachi fled the battlefield in the ensuing confusion. On his way back to safety, Kichi is killed by a horde of angry peasants and his young wife is left a widow. One day, out of nowhere, Hachi, played by Kei Sato, suddenly returns to the old woman’s shack. He reveals that he has deserted the army and that since Kichi has been killed in
Indigenous political issues were a main reason of the film being shot. Just into the film, Nona says that the sisters should claim land on their ancestry `Nora Island' where the Japanese have developed. The message was displayed humorously by Nona about dispossession. This is an important point to be addressed to the public. Only recently, more of us know that it is more than just dispossession issues the indigenous people have.
This film have several inconsistencies with the actual history as it over glorifies the tale of forty-seven ronin and display certain orientalist stereotypes throughout the movie.
Akira Kurosaw’s Seven Samurai is a film that encompasses various ideologies in order to allow the audience to understand the lives of Japanese people during the 1600’s. The film delves deep in social issues of the roles of the people within the society, the expectations as well as the obligations within the respected castes and elements within groups of ; suffering, working together, protecting family and working for the better good of the community.
The movie revolves around Pai who lost her mother and twin brother during birth. We learn that her father is a photographer and migrated to Germany to live his passion, leaving her to be raised by her grandparents. We observe that Pai becomes attached to his grandfather Koro and loves him more than anything in this world and wants to become the next chief of the tribe to make him proud, although Koro loves her, he aggressively opposes this idea. He questions her achievement and doubts her abilities all on the basis that she is only a girl. Pai, like his
In conclusion, Katsu’s tale allows one to delve deep into the day to day life of an unemployed samurai during the end of the Tokugawa era. His life can be observed to see the immense privilege the samurai status held. Not only that, he displays the values of a samurai warrior and although he does not act like an honorable samurai, he is an honorable warrior. Katsu displays the tenacity of both samurai privileges and values during the late Tokugawa shogunate. Although his life may not exemplify the ideal samurai, it does in fact allow one to observe the life of an ordinary samurai.
The rapist that Aunt Tam “fought… off alone” symbolizes the male oppression that Aunt Tam has resisted her entire life, this coupled with the loss of her brother to Chinh’s “land reform”, causes Aunt Tam to resent and despise male influences in her life. Although Aunt Tam upholds ancestral values and practices, her “obsession: to get rich [pg78]” causes her to revolt against the traditional role of a Vietnamese female, never marrying and instead seeking to be “even richer”. The traditions she does uphold are her support of Hang in order to continue her family bloodline, and proper maintenance of ancestral ritual and the ancestral home. Aunt Tam’s neglect of her traditional responsibilities to marry and maintain a housewife’s lifestyle is the product of the suffering she has faced at the hands of Chinh in her past. Aunt Tam’s “past had poisoned life for her taking with it … all maternal feeling” driving her to a life of hard work which causes Aunt Tam to never foster a family. Although she raises Hang as her heir, she never starts a family in her ancestral home in order to continue the bloodline through her own
Gender and culture are two concepts that were principally shown throughout the film. The film revolves around Toula’s traditional Greek family and how they exemplify gender roles, gender stereotyping as well as gender stratification. The film also epitomized on subcultures, countercultures, ethnocentrism, cultural relativism and lastly, cultural
These people who live in the village need the samurai, but they also fear the samurai. What is really interesting about this film is the difference between the simple farming people and the more experienced samurai. The samurai have lived a life of violence and confrontation and the farming people have lived a very simplistic lifestyle.
They witness a massacre and try to find a way out of the city before they are found and killed by the mob. The only job they can find is an all girl band so the two dress up as a woman. In addition to hiding, they both have their own. problems. Then there are the problems.
This movie has eight characters, six old women and their bus drive and a middle-aged women named Michelle. The fact that the cast are not actors makes it even more amazing. I love each of these women in the movie. Each one has their own personality which comes out beautifully in the film. They story began with when all the actress are traveling together in come country side of Quebec, Canada. All the sudden their bus breaks down and leaves six old women, Michelle and their bus driver in the woods of an isolated countryside. They find an abandoned cottage in the woods and to survive, they feast on wild raspberries, frog legs, and fish. In addition to that, they share their past experiences to kill time and survive in the woods.
Film is one of many Medias to send messages to the world. Numerous examples of movies that insert messages, 47 Ronin is one of them. The movie 47 Ronin is based on true story of Ako Incident and specifically tell us that honor is everything. The image that we discuss in the presentation was taken from the movie 47 Ronin. The image is a representation of a specific Japanese culture, Seppuku. However there are differences in story of Ako incident and 47 Ronin, and these alterations applicable to the term Orientalism.
In Zeami Motokiyo’s Noh play, Atsumori, he retells the story of Atsumori as seen in Heiki Monogatari. The story revolves around the young Taira no Atsumori who was killed at the age of fifteen by Kumagai of the Minamoto clan during the Genpei War at Ichinotani. Atsumori was left behind and spotted by Kumagai along the Suma shore. Kumagai felt sorry for Atsumori because he was about the same age as one of his sons and was torn between whether or not to kill him. He decides to kill Atsumori because if he did not, then someone else from his clan would. He figured it would be better for him to do it because he would pray for Atsumori after his death. Shortly after killing Atsumori, Kumagai renounces his ways and becomes a monk name Rensho and travels back to Ichinotani to pay his respects to and pray for the soul of Atsumori. This play is a continuation from Heike Monogatari because it tells the tale of Kumagai and what he encounters in his new life as a monk while stressing the importance of Buddhist values, such as nonattachment and karma, and character transformation of warrior to priest and enemy to friend.
The Secret Life of Geisha is a documentary film about the hidden life of geisha women in Japan. Geisha are Japanese women who entertain man through dance and singing, the term geisha as defined by the film means, “artist”. The film discusses the history of geisha, from their first appearance in the 1600s and through the major historical year of Japan from Meiji Restoration to World War II. In the 1800s, the West were confused between the image of geisha and prostitutes. The image of geisha throughout history have been clouded by prostitutes. As stated in the film, “Geisha wears her OB as the sash tied in the back”, and “Prostitutes wears their OB in the front”, beyond this distinction the geisha are the presence of a select elite, unlike prostitutes geisha livelihood isn’t exactly sex. The major period of change in terms of the roles and status of geisha was when the group of Samurai warriors began a rebellion against the Shogun's government, they used the tea house as a meeting space and with the support of geisha, the disaffected Samurai defeated the ruling of Shogun. It was 1868 when the geisha were allied to the most powerful group of people of that time, the Samurai. Another transition was the most important historical transition of
Also, the film revealed women empowerment and how superior they can be compared to men. While demonstrating sexual objectification, empowerment, there was also sexual exploitation of the women, shown through the film. Throughout this essay, gender based issues that were associated with the film character will be demonstrated while connecting to the real world and popular culture.
One of the most important types of Japanese performing art is the kabuki play. Developed in the early 17th century, kabuki has remained a popular form of theater in Japan (Johnson 1). A maid of the Izumo Shrine created kabuki in the 1600's (Johnson 1). The Traditional Theater of Japan written by Yoshinobu Inoura in 1981 stated that kabuki was named using Japanese characters in which "ka means song, bu means dance, and ki means skill" (218). At this time the plays consisted of females executing dancing performances (Johnson 1). These plays tried to show feelings and conflicts dealing with affection, envy and courage ("Noh and Kabuki" 1). Audiences enjoyed kabuki because the plays related to their lives (Kitazawa 4). The styles of kabuki changed though when women were first banned from kabuki.