The Abe Clan (1995 film)
The Abe Clan | |
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Genre | Jidaigeki |
Based on | "Abe ichizoku" by Mori Ōgai |
Screenplay by | Kinji Fukasaku Tsutomu Furuta Tsutomu Yamazaki Kōichi Satō Keizō Kanie Shōchiku Kabushiki Kaisha |
Story by | Mori Ōgai |
Directed by | Kinji Fukasaku |
Starring | |
Narrated by | Nakamura Kichiemon II |
Country of origin | Japan |
Original language | Japanese |
Production | |
Producer | Seichi Ichiko |
Running time | 94 minutes |
Original release | |
Release | 1995 |
The Abe Clan (阿部一族, Abe ichizoku) is a 1995 Japanese historical television film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It is an adaptation of the 1913 Japanese short story "Abe ichizoku" by Mori Ōgai,[1] which had previously been adapted into a 1938 theatrical film directed by Hisatora Kumagai and released by Toho.
Plot
The film is set during the Tokugawa period. Hosokawa Tadatoshi, feudal lord of the Higo Province., falls ill in the spring of the 18th year of the Kan'ei era. Tadatoshi and his son Mitsunao both forbid Tadatoshi's vassals from committing seppuku, yet after Tadatoshi's death his vassals one by one commit junshu loyalty suicide out of a sense of duty to their lord. The only one who obeys his lord's last wish is Abe Yaichi'emon. After he is treated as a coward by his comrades he also commits seppuku to honor his family. Mitsunao, who has succeeded his father and is now the new feudal lord, punishes the Abe clan for Yaichi'emon's failure to obey this order. The Abe clan shuts itself up in its manor in protest of the unfair treatment as Mituano's troops approach.
Cast
- Tsutomu Yamazaki as Abe Yaichi'emon
- Kōichi Satō as Abe Yagobei
- Hiroyuki Sanada as Matashichirō
- Yumi Asō as Tae
- Mariko Fuji as O'ichi
- Renji Ishibashi as Hayashi Geki
- Keizō Kanie as Abe Gonbei
- Noboru Nakaya as Hosokawa Tadatoshi
- Tetta Sugimoto as Takeuchi Kazuma
Production
The film is a television film adaptation of the 1913 short story "Abe ichizoku" by Mori Ōgai[2] (translated into English under the titles "The Abe Family" as well as "The Abe Clan"),[3] which was inspired by the junshi loyalty suicides committed by Russo-Japanese War hero General Nogi Maresuke and his wife on the day of the funeral of Emperor Meiji.[4][5][6] The short story had previously been adapted as a 1938 theatrical film directed by Kumagai Hisatora and released by Toho,[4] followed by three television adaptations broadcast in 1959, 1961, and 1993 before Fukasaku's production.[7]
Broadcast
The television film was broadcast in Japan on the Fuji Television show Friday Entertainment at 9:00 p.m. on November 24, 1995.
Video release
The film was released on Region 1 DVD as part of the four-DVD collection 深作欣二監督 シリーズ1 (Fukasaku Kinji Works Vol.1) on Aug 23, 2003.[8] The film was released on DVD in Japan by Japan Video Distribution (JVD) Co. Ltd. on January 24, 2004. A Director's Cut is available.[9][10][11] The film is available from the library of the Humboldt University of Berlin, where it is recommended viewing for a lecture on Mori Ōgai within the Seminar for East Asian Studies.[12] The Director's Cut of the film is available in the University of Hamburg library.[13]
Reception
The film was shown as part of the Historica Focus category for period films at the 7th Kyoto Historica International Film Festival, which described the film as "A true tragedy that happened within the Hosokawa clan during the early Edo era. The film captures various human reactions and the subtleties of the samurai's code. Director Kinji Fukasaku takes on the megaphone to turn Mori Ogai's historical novel into a piece of period entertainment. Tsutomu Yamazaki, Keizo Kanie and Koichi Sato take on the role to play out the tragedy of a vassal struggling to serve loyalty at the death of his lord. A masterpiece with a luxurious cast of veterans including Noboru Nakaya, Hiroyuki Sanada and Renji Ishibashi."[14]
References
- ^ 阿部一族 = The Abe clan. 28 November 2018. OCLC 62716183.
- ^ Karatani, Kōjin (28 November 2018). History and Repetition. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231157292 – via Google Books.
- ^ Mori Ôgai: A Bibliography of Western-language Materials. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. 28 November 2018. ISBN 9783447058049 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Sharp, Jasper (13 October 2011). Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810875418 – via Google Books.
- ^ Bargen, Doris G. (28 November 2018). Suicidal Honor: General Nogi and the Writings of Mori ?gai and Natsume S?seki. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824829988 – via Google Books.
- ^ Mori, ?gai (28 November 1991). The Historical Fiction of Mori ÅOgai. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824813666 – via Google Books.
- ^ Morikawa, Takemitsu (31 March 2014). Japanizität aus dem Geist der europäischen Romantik: Der interkulturelle Vermittler Mori Ogai und die Reorganisierung des japanischen 'Selbstbildes' in der Weltgesellschaft um 1900. transcript Verlag. ISBN 9783839418932 – via Google Books.
- ^ "深作欣二監督 シリーズ1 FUKASAKU KINJI WORKS Vol.1" – via Amazon.
- ^ "Abe Ichizoku (The Abe Clan) Director's Cut Digitally Remastered TV Drama DVD". CDJapan.
- ^ "YESASIA: Abe Ichizoku -Director's Cut Digitally Remastered (Japan Version) DVD - Motomu Furuta, Yamazaki Tsutomu, Shochiku Home Video - Japan TV Series & Dramas - Free Shipping - North America Site". www.yesasia.com.
- ^ The Abe clan. 24 January 2019. OCLC 915952609.
- ^ h0652egc. ""Möwenfern". Ôgai Mori Rintarô und die Seinen - ein Kaleidoskop japanischer Kultur — Institut für Asien- und Afrikawissenschaften". www.iaaw.hu-berlin.de.
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ University Library listing
- ^ "ABE ICHIZOKU".
External links
- The Abe Clan at IMDb
- 1995 television films
- 1995 films
- Japanese television films
- 1990s Japanese films
- 1990s historical drama films
- Japanese historical drama films
- 1990s Japanese-language films
- Films directed by Kinji Fukasaku
- Jidaigeki films
- Films set in the 1640s
- 1990s samurai films
- Films set in Kumamoto Prefecture
- Films about suicide
- Films based on short fiction