Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Thailand, etc
Post Reply
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

Teruo Ishii 100 Years / Tsunehiko Watase 80 Years / # Strip Dance is Not a Crime! (part 1/2)

Day 0: Thursday

Sandwich, flight, Tokyo, capsule. The usual drill.

Day 1: Friday

This was a busy day if there ever was one, straight from the start when I somehow managed to get lost at the Shibuya Station. It’s a small station and I’ve been using it for 15 years, but somehow I found myself in the third floor for the first time. I swear, there’s no exit there! Thankfully I did eventually find a way out and headed to my first stop, which was Teruo Ishii’s 100th Anniversary Retrospective at Cinema Vera.

For someone who doesn’t live in Japan it may be difficult to understand just how popular Ishii is among Tokyo cinema programmers. This was the 4th full scale retrospective held in his memory over the past 8 years, following Cinema Vera’s earlier retrospective in 2017, Shin bungeiza’s a bit smaller Ishii retrospective held sometime after that, and Laputa Asagaya’s massive Ishii retrospective in 2019-2020. And that’s not counting Bungeiza’s Ishii All Night in 2018. Ishii has been dubbed “The King of Cult”, and in Japan that certainly holds true to this day.

I was only on time for the last day of the three week retrospective, subtitled “Stylish Teruo Ishii”, which featured a selection of his gangster movies, noirs, ero-guro films, and rare television works. Except for the TV works and Shintoho movies, the movies screened from 35mm film prints.

Yellow Line and G-Men in the Pacific
Image

First up was Villain Field (無頼平野) (1995), Ishii's first theatrically released gangster movie in almost 20 years, and only his 2nd theatrical production in since his heyday at Toei. This was clearly an ambition project as the film crafts a rather rich story with plenty of character development, while Ishii still remaining his usual devilish self, as evidenced by numerous grotesque details. Mainly it's a drama about a man working in the most despised of professions (extracting blood from placentas and dead babies for a blood bank) and harassed by gangsters who don't know who they're dealing with. There's gritty low key drama, romance, friendship, as well as sex and bits of Yakuza Law level violence. Teruo Yoshida pops up, as does Toru Yuri (surely everyone assumed he was dead already). As I was watching the film I thought it was just alright, but the more I think about it the more I feel this was a worthwhile watch.

Villain Field was shot on 16mm and blown up to 35mm for distribution. The print was appropriately grainy, and had a brownish tint which I don't know if it was intentional or not, but looked quite pleasing overall. Cinema Vera's projection also looked good - perhaps the print was a bit dark to begin with as it didn't look too bright like many projections at Vera these days. The theatre was hardly packed, no surprise at 11 am, but not empty by any means either.

Blind Woman's Curse and Bohachi Bushido: Porno jidaigeki
Image

Up next was G-Men in the Pacific (太平洋のGメン) (1962), one of the few gangster films Ishii did that focused on the law enforcement rather than the outlaws. This was made at New Toei, a lower budgeted sub-branch responsible for some of the breeziest and most energetic Toei programmers in the early 60s. Though not one of the best, this is still a fun film. The plot features Shinjiro Ebara as a crooked fisherman who picks up gangster property from the sea and finds himself between ruthless yakuza boss Tetsuro Tamba and lawman Chiezo Kataoka (why is this legendary tough guy actor who starred in over 300 films not better known outside of Japan?)

I had seen G-Men in the Pacific before on streaming. I remember it well because I watched the latest Mission: Impossible on the same day in IMAX and came out wondering why did the Hollywood spectacle look visually so much worse than Ishii's film? My expectations were hence set high for the 35mm screening. It was a decent presentation for sure, but Vera's calibration combined with a very slightly faded print meant my expectations weren't fully met. It still looked better than Mission: Impossible.

G-Men in the Pacific and Boss's Ruin
Image

My original plan was to follow G-Men in the Pacific with yet another Ishii film, the 1969 semi-giallo Shameless: Abnormal and Abusive Love (異常性愛記録 ハレンチ) (1969). Not the greatest film, but I’ve always wished to see it in 35mm as it has some lovely visuals and a nice 60s swing. However, I felt there were more pressing reasons to dedicate the rest of the day to performing arts (I’ll get back to these reasons - why the Osaka police sucks - later on in this report). Hence I headed to Kawasaki Rockza, which is located just outside of Tokyo in Kawasaki and is a sister theatre to Asakusa Rockza.

I’ve already written aplenty about Asakusa Rockza, which is the biggest, oldest and most beautiful strip theatre in Japan. Asakusa is different from all the others as it’s the only place that does massive group performances, employs a professional choreographer who produces the dance numbers, and has their own costume department. In contrast all other strip theatres merely provide a stage for the dancers who perform solo and create their own performances (and travel to another theatre every 10 days). You should hence expect something on a smaller scale in these places.

Image

This was my first time visiting Kawasaki Rockza. The theatre was much smaller than Asakusa. Even if you stood against the back wall you'd only be a few metres away from the stage. The place was packed and I had to stand through the first couple of performances. The audience profile seemed a bit different from Asakusa, perhaps a bit more traditional (greyer, geekier, some wearing fan t-shirts) than the trendy folks that go to Asakusa. However, the atmosphere was kind and relaxed with nothing but love towards the performers. There was even a "tambourine guy" playing a tambourine to liven up the atmosphere during the performances. There were also five women in the audience. I was the only foreigner.

The flow of the show is also a bit different from Asakusa, who do four two-hours shows a day, each consisting of seven performances. Kawasaki initially seems to follow the same format, but in reality it’s more like six separate performances repeated from noon till night without breaks. You can enter any time, even during a performance. Furthermore, each performance is followed by “Open Show” and “Polaroid Time” (more about that later).

(side note: from here on I'm going to be referring to the dancers in the Japanese name order. I know this may seem odd and inconsistent, but it's a world that exists almost exclusively in Japanese, and it drives me nuts reversing their names every time I write about them in English. Movie discussion is different since we all learned their names in the Western order. But the dancers I've literally never seen their names in the Western order until I forced myself to type them that way. But I'll stop that now for my own sake. So please bear with me even if it made no sense logically...)

This week’s performers were Mamiya Nagi, Kazahana Kafka, Tsubaki Rinne, ALLIY, Yukina, and Minami Mayu. I was familiar with all of them except for Kafka from Asakusa. With the dancers having to create their own performances from the scratch it would probably be fair to say what you see on stage reflects their personalities or at least artistic ambitions. It should then not be surprising that Mamiya Nagi did essentially a mini idol concert, even singing one song, before losing her clothes. Or that the much talked about and mysterious newcomer Kazahana Kafka lived up to the hype with her existential performance borrowing from the Old Testament and even featuring a clever chronology reversal where she becomes aware of her nudity and starts dressing up rather than down (even veterans commented they’ve never seen something like that before). I guess it figures, she even named herself after Franz Kafka. And she’s very pretty, looking like a Japanese 1980s idol with her long hair.

The absolute standout however was Tsubaki Rinne. Someone on Twitter gave a perfect description of her as “one woman British punk rock band” (who doesn't sing). Expect a lot of pink and purple. Early Sion Sono from his Tokyo Gagaga days, and Fight Club x Where is My Mind with added Japanese Lolita flavour also kept coming to my mind while I watched her dig a grave on stage and hug a plastic torso that had “FUCK” written on it. And she’s a terrific dancer. Every single movement and pose seemed carefully considered and designed to convey something.

I don't have stage photo of Rinne, but I'll try to convey a bit of her essence with these three pictures
Image

The remaining performers were ALLIY, whose fun and light dance surprised me after seeing her in something much darker in Asakusa, Yukina who is so pretty that she reminded me of a young Audrey Hepburn, and main star Minami Mayu who always radiates warmth and friendliness (a lot of dancers say she’s literally the nicest person they’ve ever met). Overall it was a fun 2.5 hours, though with the exception of Tsubaki Rinne everyone seemed to be doing something a little simpler than the spectacle and visual feast you get in Asakusa. This one had more like a mini scale idol concert feel to a lot of it.

One more thing I should talk about in more detail, also to give background to the police case I'll be discussing in the next post. Like most of these smaller theatres, Kawasaki is referred to as a Pola-kan (Polaroid Theatre) because they offer the audience an opportunity to take a photo of the performer between the performances. The dancers are clothed during to the photo shoot though they lose the top upon request. The photo can only be taken with a camera provided by the theatre, and photos will be given back to the customers only after the show once the staff has inspected them to make sure there is not even accidental below-the-belt nudity. I’m not really sure what to think of the whole photo shoot thing, but in fairness three of the five women in the audience lined to take Yukina’s photo!

After Kasasaki it was time to head to the next show in… Asakusa Rockza. I’ve been reading quite a bit about Asakusa since my last post and finally found out who their choreographer is. It’s Miyabi Reika, a 57 year old former dancer who learned her craft in Las Vegas and debuted in Asakusa as a dancer in 1985. She occasionally does guest appearances on stage. With her and costume designer Noya working behind the stage, and the dancers on stage, you could say this is really a women’s vision what you see (not to mention the former president who ran Asakusa Rockza for decades was also a woman).

It was a full house with more than 130 people in the audience, including about 20 women (I later read three of the day's four shows sold out). As usual, the show was an absolute blast and I still can’t get the soundtrack out of my head. I actually found the full song list this time, so I can better guide you through the performances… it was 29 songs ranging from Perfume to Ryuichi Sakamoto and Godiego in a 1h 40 min show.

First up was the always delightful and super energetic Omi Haruka, with support from Suzuki Mint, Suo Ai and four back dancers, in the typically massive and carnival-like opening number. Their costumes looked like something from Earth Beat finale from earlier this summer. It was a good performance, but her solo part where she performs with two giant fans that looked like giant yellow/orange wings was incredible, especially her slow exist from the stage set to “Everybody is a Superstar (edit: US link, damn country blocks)”. Somehow it gave me serious Ninja in the Dragon’s Den vibes, no kidding! Oh and her ultra flexible moves and poses are also so cool! Best twitter comment: “Omi Haruka attempts to freeze time with her final (upside down) pose!”.

Omi Haruka.
Image

Next up was Suo Ai with support from Suzuki Mint and Nagase Karen. Actually if you just look at the stage photo and play the first song (Peggy Lee – Fever) you’ll get the idea. The 2nd performance is nearly always something moody and low key, and this was kind of a perfect example of it. Not entirely my cup of tea, but cool nevertheless.

Image

The third performance really took me by a surprise. At first I didn’t know what to think of seeing entire supporting cast (Omi Haruka, Irita Maya, Kasagi Ichika) dressed up as cute old grannies with canes and twisted backs, and Sakamoto Ryuichi & Sakai Syuko’s “Computer Grandma” blasting from the speakers, but this performance soon won me over and now I have to say it absolutely rocked! Nagase Karen, whom I saw for the first time, is the lead and the only one not dressed up as a grandma. Next the music switches to “Jennie wa gokigen naname”. The visual and audio design in her solo part (set to “Laser Beam” by Perfume) was a total visual assault, with the entire stage bathed in rays of blue from the lamps and giant mirror ball. Her exit from the stage sounded like the fucking Battle of Normandy had every solder had been carrying cannons instead of rifles! This was such an insane(ly good) performance. I regret I didn’t buy a stage photo.

As I was too dumb to buy a stage photo, here's what I could find online: an old photo of Nagase + Kasagi in grandma attire
Image

The fourth performance confirmed my former suspicions that Sara, who’s turning 50 next month and first performed in Asakusa 33 years ago(!), might just be the most skilled dancer Asakusa has, and hopefully isn’t anywhere near retirement. There’s no one who moves as gracefully as she does, or who uses her arms with such precision. It was a pure bliss from the moment she appeared in a red suit and hat, set to “Educated Feet” but it got even better after she switched to a red dress. The entire stage was bathed in absolutely apocalyptic red light, and all I could think of was that I’m in the middle of a 1977 Dario Argento film. And how she turned her red dress into a stage prop after taking it off was genius. Sadly I couldn’t find the music for this online, but it sounded like a 70s black pop ballad.

Sara. I bought not one, but two photos of her. These are the two costumes she wears in the performance
Image

Up next was a 10 minute break, which actually turned out to be one of coolest parts of the show. Why? Because they played a 10 minute highlights video from the first seven months of the year, featuring clips of every performance and performer. I wish Asakusa could make these videos public (with nudity censored) as the footage is amazing, but I guess music copyrights and other reasons prevent that.

Back from the break, we have Kasagi Ichika with Irita Maya, Suo Ai, Omi Haruka and Nagase Karen in full Christmas attire dancing to popular Christmas songs such as “Extraordinarily Merry Christmas”. A less remarkable performance IMO, but still a lot of fun due to the overwhelming energy and cuteness on display.

Clockwise from left: Omi, Nagase, Suo, Irita, Kasagi
Image

I got through the first five performances without any major embarrassments, but then it happened. Suzuki Mint. Sakamoto Ryuichi. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence. Tear ducts burst open immediately. Suzuki’s dresses (two traditional Japanese wedding dresses) were great. The final part set to “Tomodachi no Uta” by Nakamura Ataru was great, too. This was such as incredible performance. Now that I think about it, this isn’t the first (nor the second) time I’m in tears in the 6th performance. Miyabi san gets me every time, it seems.

Suzuki Mint in the middle. And that's Sara behind her
Image

There were no great expectations set for the seventh performance, which saw Irita Maaya return on stage after her debut a few months ago. So how did it go this time? Holy shit! She was incredible, a total dancing queen moving to “Queen Bee” and four other songs. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone make such a miraculous improvement over a short time, be it dance or anything else. Last time she was like a 3/10, this time easily 7.5 or even 8/10. I knew she’d been studying hard and doing pilgrimage to just about every strip theatre in Kanto to watch and learn from other dancers (she’s been posting selfies with other dancers for weeks), but absolutely no one could have anticipated this kind of improvement. Correspondingly the whole venue nearly exploded from the audience excitement once everyone realized what they were witnessing.

From left: Kasagi Ichika, Irita Maaya, and guess who? Sara! That woman is incredible!
Image

Finally, it was time to bid farewell to the performers in the finale which was set to Godiego’s Galaxy Express 999 soundtrack. Except the audience wouldn’t let the dancers leave. Continuing applause had the cast return on stage for an encore.

It was around 10:30 P.M. when I got out from Rockza. I still had a few more things to do before heading back to my hotel. I had not had dinner yet, so opted for a bowl of Kobe Beef Ramen almost next to Rockza. Also I finally remembered the check out Sensoji at night. I had seen the famous temple daytime, but I heard it’s worth seeing at night as well. Being located only a few hundred metres from Rockza this was the perfect opportunity.

Image

Image

Old meets new. Notice Tokyo Sky Tree in the background.
Image

On my way back to hotel my I photographed this lonely kappa. There are many in Asakusa.
Image

To be continued... Next let's talk about movies (Tsunehiko Watase retrospective & Sonny Chiba films)
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

Teruo Ishii 100 Years / Tsunehiko Watase 80 Years / # Strip Dance is Not a Crime! (part 2/2)

Day 2: Saturday

After celebrating Teruo Ishii's 100th Anniversary for three weeks, Cinema Vera turned their focus to everyone else "Born in 1924". Among them were Koji Tsuruta, Machiko Kyo, and Ryuhei Uchida. I hence found myself heading to Vera again, and making sure not to enter the 3rd floor of Shibuya Station on my way.

I was on time for the 11:00 screening of High Ranking Yakuza (青雲やくざ) (1965), a relatively obscure Shochiku youth/yakuza hybrid. I was hoping this would turn out to be a forgotten gem, but no such luck here. The film follows a university student (Muga Takewaki) who takes over a yakuza gang from his brother, who was assassinated by another criminal group. As an educated youth, however, he has a different idea on how to lead the gang than macho revenge with blazing guns. And here is where the film fails. In its idealism the picture betrays both of its genres and comes out merely naive. Tough guys Tetsuro Tamba and Ryuhei Uchida, both appearing in supporting roles, deserved a rougher and more honest genre picture.

The 35mm print wasn't much to write home about either. There was relatively severe flickering during the first reel that nearly gave me a headache, and the image was soft. About 30 or 40 minutes into the film all cleared up however, and the rest looked perfectly fine.

Freedom School (1951) and High-Ranking Yakuza
Image

The Woman and the Pirate (1959) and Three Lakes Prison (1973)
Image

Love Stopped the Runaway Train (1973) and Juvenile Delinquent: Shout of the Rising Sun (1967)
Image

Image

High Ranking Yakuza was the only film I had time to watch in the 1924 retrospective as I needed to be on my way to Laputa Asagaya for their Tsunehiko Watase 80th Anniversary retrospective. Laputa had already held a Late Show for Watase about 7 or 8 years ago, but this time he was given the Main Program treatment with 23 films in the program. Among them were favourites like Violent Panic: The Big Crash, Crazed Beast, and True Story of the Ginza Tortures, but also lesser known films like Wild Sex Gang, Wicked Kempo, and the 1989 Hiroki Matsukata / Sonny Chiba / Tatsuo Umemiya film Sensei, which I wish I could have seen (it will screen for three days just before Christmas from a print owned by the Film Archive). The program was selected by film maker Shunsuke Yamamoto and critic Hiroe Sato who would also be hosting several talk events throughout the retrospective.

Laputa Asagaya
Image

My first film was Yakuza Wolf 2: Extend My Condolences (狼やくざ 葬いは俺が出す) (1972), which I had missed earlier this year in Osaka due to a delayed flight. It's an usually mismatched sequel that belongs to a different genre than its predecessor. While the first film was notable for being a bit of a game changer for Chiba as it kicked off his anti-hero era (and would be followed by numerous gritty gangster and martial arts films), this sequel instead feels like a throwback to the light-hearted stunt action Chiba had pioneered in the late 60s and early 70s (Kamikaze Man, Key Hunter, Yakuza Deka 1-4) and was still best known for in 1972. The first 20 min is a blast from Chiba's window crashing stunt to his self performed theme song, very funny comedy routines with Nikkatsu refugee Tatsuya Fujii as they fantasize a prison escape, and of course singing ex-girlfriend Reiko Ike who was back at Toei after her summer 1972 breakup with the studio. It's the middle third where the film loses steam as not much happens before the entertaining and stunt packed action climax (p.s the bridge Chiba hangs from is the same one Shihomi fell from in Sister Street Fighter. The same bridge appears in a while bunch of other Toei films as well). It's a fun film for Chiba and Toei fans, but rather unremarkable beyond that.

Laputa screened Yakuza Wolf 2 from a very good print with beautiful colours, strong blacks and moderate grain. There were a few damaged bits with green lines but no biggie. I have this film on Shout's BD as well, but can't imagine it quite reaching this quality.

Image

Next up was G.I. Samurai (戦国自衛隊) (1979). By the time this film was made, Toei's studio loyalty system had finally ended and Chiba went to work for the new Kadokawa Studios, who essentially brought Hollywood and ultra-commercialism to Japanese cinema. The budget here would've paid for a dozen Street Fighters. It's all on screen, in a fantasy tale about a modern army unit thrown back in time to the samurai era to fight with and against famous historical figures. It's machine guns against swords, tanks against arrows, and stunts a plenty in what feels like a polished & dialled up remake of Chiba's 60s and early 70s stunt action. The film should hence be considered one of Chiba's most representative works, even if the Western world remembers him better for karate films. However, the film does lack some of the murderous vitality of those pictures. Also, there are times when (despite plentiful political incorrectness) the commercialism bogs it down, particularly at the incredibly drawn out ending where they couldn't yell "cut" until the theme song had been played in full. That was part of Kadokawa's media mix strategy, which also allowed omitting credits from the film (no need for those after all the merchandise and media publicity that had accompanied the film).

I had seen this movie in 35mm before, just over 10 years ago at Cinema Vera (with Chiba in attendance. I even got to talk with him). I presume this was a different print because while the image looked pristine (seriously, who'd want to watch a 4K digital version when a film print look this gorgeous?) there was an odd sound issue where the volume dropped considerably during the last 15 minutes.

After the screening there was a talk event with Jun Eto, who played one of the young soldiers in the film. Eto recalled how Chiba was excited like a little boy at the set, Etsuko Shihomi popped up one day to bring everyone sweets, Chiba's wife Yoko Nogiwa was cooking curry for the crew, and Tsunehiko Watase was so dedicated to playing the alienated rogue solder that he spent his nights drinking alone in the local restaurant, separate from the rest of the crew. Eto also mentioned that the Japanese Self Defence Forces withdrew their support from the film after seeing what Watase's character does to innocent civilians in the movie. It was also mentioned that while Watase was a mild mannered man, he sometimes lost his cool with the goofing and drinking Piranha Gang members.

Film critic Hiroe Sato (left) and film maker Shunsuke Yamamoto (right) interviewing Jun Eto (middle)
Image

The night's last film was an old favourite of mine: Delinquent Girl Boss: Worthless to Confess (ずべ公番長 ざんげの値打ちもない) (1971). This is the movie that made me fall in love with Reiko Oshida almost 20 years ago, and still remains one of my favourite Pinky Violence films. Unlike some of the sleazier and more violent movies that came later, this series was characterized by the positive vibes and irresistible energy embodied by Oshida. It's a breezy ride full of pop-art and cool girls, with solid male support provided by spare-Takakura Tsunehiko Watase, and a terrific ending (both the massacre and the bittersweet closing shot) that I absolutely love.

Less impressive was the print, which was frankly a bit of a mess. It wasn't terrible by any means, but a bit murky from start to finish. On top of that, the colours seemed to fluctuate from scene to scene, sometimes looking too red, sometimes too yellow, sometimes too blue, and sometimes just plain great. I was expecting a better print, especially after some the jaw-droppingly gorgeous prints I saw in Laputa a few months ago, like Wandering Ginza Butterfly and The Red Silk Gambler.

Time and Tide, True Account of the Ginza Tortures, Fossilized Wilderness
Image

After the film I stopped at Asagaya Kitchen with a friend who had joined me for the last two screenings. And no, there were no dancers in the day's program. None whatsoever. Didn't see anyone nude. Except when I got to my capsule hotel and took a bath with with two dozen naked men. It was a sausage party!

Day 3: Sunday

I promised before that I’d explain the amount of strip theatre visits in my schedule, so here goes.

On Nov. 19, 2024 the Osaka police raided Toyo Show, one of the few remaining strip theatres in the Osaka region, a venue loved by customers and dancers alike. 10 people were arrested, including the owner and the dancers, accused of public obscenity! Among the five dancers were four Asakusa Rockza regulars whom I’ve seen on stage: Fujikawa Nao, Shirahashi Riho, Suzuki Chisato and Hinata Suzu.

According to news reports, the staff is accused of conspiring to force the dancers to reveal their lower body during to customers during a post-performance photo session, and even shining light to their genitals. Regular customers were quick to comment online those claims are complete bullshit. The theatre has a strict policy against such photos, and the dancers always appear clothed during the photo sessions. Furthermore, the photos can only be taken with a camera provided by the theatre, and the photos are given to the customers only after the staff have carefully inspected them so that there’s not even accidental lower body nudity visible.

It’s hard to say whether the charges were untruthful or if the media simply completely misunderstood the concept (yes, there’s nudity during the dance; yes, they have lights in the venue because you can’t dance in complete darkness; and yes, there’s a photo shoot but with no below-the-belt nudity) and put the pieces together incorrectly. The “police arresting evil men” narrative also stinks considering they arrested the dancers as well, and put five women out of work every week for the foreseeable future as long as the theatre is closed (expectation: till the end of next year).

It's been said that this was a clean-up operation before next year’s Osaka Expo, partly because there had been many foreign visitors to Toyo Show. A week later the police reportedly targeted homeless people whom they wanted off the streets. But why raid Toyo Show who’ve been in operation since the 1980s, and not any of the other strip theatres? It was suggested by an ex cop that this was scare tactic used by the police to make an example of one venue. And I thought the law was supposed to be the same to everyone (speaking of which, this is the same vague law that forbids obscenity that causes movie censorship in Japan. It dates back a 100 years and was intended for the Meiji Era). It seems the police considers a woman’s body obscene and thinks women must be chained. Let me here suggest a new slogan for the Osaka Police: “Your Body, Our Jurisdiction”. They can thank me later.

Suddenly Confessions of a Dog director Gen Takahashi's old comments about the Japanese police being no different from the yakuza came back to mind. I never took him seriously before, but in the light of this incident I'm starting to think he may have had a point. Seriously, scare tactics? To make an example of one venue? Isn't that how the yakuza operate?

So the atmosphere following the raid was very depressed. Fans and dancers alike were shocked by the news. It’s a small industry with only about 15 theatres left in Japan (the dancers tour them every few weeks, going from city to city to perform), and now five dancers are out of job and income every week. And what was their crime? No one has been hurt, no one has been unwillingly exposed to nudity. Every dancer says they are only in this business because they love what they do, and will continue even if they risk getting arrested for it. It’s a job where they get to dance all day, create their own performances and costumes with complete artistic freedom (except in Asakusa where a female choreographer and a female costume designer are in charge), and travel around the country. Some day they’ve considered a better paying job, but can’t think of anything that would be as much fun to do.

In the days following the news I read almost every Japanese language twitter comment that mentioned Toyo Show, that must've been thousands of messages, and the support for the dancers has been overwhelming. Some have pointed out that this arrest benefitted no one (no one was saved, no act of violence, robbery or fraud was prevented, and no justice was served to anyone) except the police who earned points from the government. The hashtags “#strip dance is not a crime” and “#strip dance hurts no one” can be found in hundreds of messages posted by fans, former dancers, and some current dancers. Most current dancers have chosen to stay quiet on the matter, perhaps out of fear and not to draw more police attention. Below are a few comments from those who have spoken:

“I’m filled with sadness and anger at this news. Please don’t take away our beloved venue.”Fujisaki Marika (Rockza dancer), Nov. 21

“I cried when I saw everyone’s support for strip dance on my timeline. Angels are telling me we’ll be alright”Akanishi Ryo (Rockza dancer), Nov. 21

"I will never take it for granted that I will be allowed to dance on stage, and will continue doing my best without forgetting to be grateful". -Shiratori Swan (Rockza dancer), Nov. 21

“My thoughts are with everyone who was in Osaka that day. I feel like crying, but we can’t give up. Let’s love strip dance together!”Tsubaki Rinne (Rockza dancer), Nov. 23 (see ALT)

“My performance in Toyo Show has been officially cancelled. I feel as perplexed and lonely as you do. But we are not alone!”Momose Oto (Rockza dancer), Nov. 30

"Thank you so much for your words of support and concern over the past 10 days. Once again I've realized that being able to stand on stage is not something to be taken for granted." - Shirahashi Riho (Rockza dancer), Dec. 10

Sadly there have been some ill-informed comments also, in the lines of “good job saving those poor girls who were forced into stripping” or “strip dance is no art, it should be banned”. Also, "stop letting foreigners into strip theatres" (it's not that they've done anything wrong, the government just doesn't want the world to know that things such as homeless people and strip dance exist in Japan).

All this happened less than two weeks before my Tokyo trip. I wasn’t sure if any theatres would be left standing by the time I arrive (thankfully others haven’t been targeted) or if I’d be admitted in as a foreign national. Furthermore, I was terribly worried for the arrested dancers. Most of them were young women who post on Twitter multiple times a day. However, they all went silent after Nov. 19. Not a single one of them had posted by the end of Nov. But Shirahashi Riho, who was among the arrested dancers, was scheduled to dance at Kawasaki from Dec. 1 and that’s why I wanted to go see if she was alright (though I did actually get an indirect confirmation of that just a few days before my trip when another dancer posted a photo of Riho-chan taking dance lessons at a dance studio).

So here I am again, at Kawasaki Rockza. They're starting a new 10 day run with new dancers today (in Asakusa it's 20 days, but in all other venues its 10 days). Riho-chan comes out on stage and performs a schoolgirl in agony piece that must be the angstiest and angriest performance I’ve ever seen. Crying, silent screaming and constant violent kicks. The message was understood by everyone. I’m not sure what the performance was called but it obviously wasn’t her trademark “Boss Baby” performance. Later the same day she finally made her first online post since the arrest that simply said “I love being on stage!”, followed by another post a few days later saying “I can’t go into details, but being able to express myself on stage is truly a wonderful and gratifying thing”.

p.s. Shirahashi Riho must be the unluckiest dancer in the world. She was at Shinjuku New Art in August when the place was flooded (she had to be rescued from the dressing room where she was sleeping between performances), and three months later she's in Toyo Show when the police raids it. In contrast, Sato Kohaku must be the luckiest dancer. She's a newcomer and an ordinary girl who went from being a strip theatre customer to a staff member and finally a dancer earlier this year. She quit her staff position at Shinjuku New Art a few weeks before it was flooded, and she was dancing at Toyo Show but got sick and had to drop out 24 hours before the place was raided (I feel sorry for the dancer who came to replace her and got arrested immediately).

p.s. 2 Fujikawa Nao likewise returned on stage Dec. 1 (at a different theatre) and likewise made her first social media post on that day, saying she has prepared a new performance (called "Dancer") in a hurry and wants everyone to see it right now. She continued by saying “what hasn’t changed between then and now, and from here on, is that I’ll always love being on stage”. An audience member later commented (in a post shared by Fujikawa) that "although Fujikawa is always very expressive, this performance was on a next level... I felt like the message was "no dance, no life"". )

As I’ve already written too much I won’t cover the rest of the show in Kawasaki in detail, but I’ll just mention newcomer Oku Mio basically broke the system with her excess cuteness (her Polaroid line got so long the program immediately fell 15 minutes behind schedule, and Nagawasa Yukino really impressed me with her cool, mature dance and costume and unbelievable flexibility. Once again, a lot of the others had a fair bit of idol flavour to their performances.

update: against all expectations, Toyo Show made a miraculous recovery on Dec. 7 when they re-opened. They only announced it on the previous night, saying they'd be resuming business with some modifications to the show (details unknown to me). Reportedly the first day went fine with both dancers and audience delighted to be back, though it was chaotic since none had had time to prepare properly. Among the four dancers who were able to arrive was Hitata Suzu, who was one the arrested dancers two weeks earlier. That girl's got some balls! Hopefully she's send a signed Polaroid photo to the Osaka Police.

Now how did this recovery happen exactly, I have no idea. I guess either the police found out they don't have a case after all, or the staff pulled out 70s Nikkatsu (I'm referring to the infamous Roman Porno Trial where director Seiichiro Yamaguchi and others were accused of distribution of obscene material when the film Love Hunter (1972) was released. While the trial was still on, Yamaguchi responded by making a sequel to Love Hunter!). In any case, the re-opening seems to have been a big success. There have been rumours of below-the-belt nudity possibly being removed or toned down, but that is unconfirmed.


After Kawasaki I should have been on my way to Laputa Asagaya, but I also felt like catching the show at Asakusa Rockza one more time since it had been so much fun on the first time. They were still doing the same show, with same dancers, that I had seen on Friday. Turned out it was even more fun on the 2nd time. Crazy good atmosphere and once again full house (at first I thought it wasn't full since there was an empty seat or two, but then I realized there were at least 20 people standing). There were about 15 women as well in the audience. Haruka was still bursting with energy, Maaya amazed everyone with her new dancing skills, I still couldn't hold my tears back when Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence started playing, and this time I really fell in love with the "three grandmas" performance.

Also, the most amusing thing I saw during this trip: actual high school girls taking selfies with cardboard Minami Mayu in front of Asakusa Rockza. I'm not sure if they knew who she was. I forgot to take a photo of it, so I'll post one from the theatre's twitter account:

Image

Once the curtains closed, it was time to head to my final stop, which was Laputa Asagaya. I had initially hoped to fit in Norifumi Suzuki's Kanto Street Peddlers: Violent Fire Festival (関東テキヤ一家 喧嘩火祭り) (1971) (the 4th film in the series, 2nd best film in the contemporary ninkyo series) into my schedule, but that ended up sacrificed for Asakusa. I did however have time for the day's last movie: Delinquent Boss: Wolves on Motorcycles (不良番長 やらずぶったくり) (1971), though I damn nearly missed it as well. What happened was that someone jumped on the tracks at Shinjuku Station, and all trains were stopped for over 20 minutes. My Chuo Local train wasn't even near Shinjuku Station, but got stuck in the queue all the same. I don't know if they managed to clear the kamikaze out of the tracks in one piece or several.

Kanto Street Peddlers: Violent Fire Festival
Image

Anyhow, I reached Laputa a few minutes before they started admitting people in. I had seen the movie before and recalled it being one of the best in the not so good series (of 14 films). And also, it being a bit of a shit fest (even literally in one scene) though in a somewhat positive sense. There's a widespread misunderstanding among people who haven't seen these movies that they are badass biker exploitation films. Actually they are incredibly silly low-brow comedies with the exception of the first few films and part 14, which co-stars Reiko Ike and feels like a sukeban movie except it's the toxic masculinity version.

Toxic is the keyword to Wolves on Motorcycles, which sees Tatsuo Umemiya's goofy pirate biker gang battle yakuza who have dumped toxic waste into the water (resulting in a rather memorable "shit panic scene after everyone eats toxic fish).. Before that we get a lot of unbelievably dumb comedy that often reaches surreal levels in childishness. I was laughing my ass off, as was the rest of the (almost purely male) audience. There's a lot of good actors in the film, from Tsunehiko Watase to Bunta Sugawara and Yayoi Watanabe, in addition to the series regulars like Shingo Yamashiro and Rikiya Yasuoka. There are even a couple of tender moments of romance and brotherly bonding in the middle of the slapstick mayhem.

The film was followed by a talk even with Toshimichi Saeki, who wasn't actually involved in this film but worked in the last film in the series and directed Watase in some later productions. Hosts Hiroe Sato and Shunsuke Yamamoto urged the audience to be considerate when sharing information about the talk contents in social media as they anticipated they'd end up offending just about every minority and human rights group imaginable, but sadly the talk remained rather civil. We learned that in 70s Toei productions filming would go on till 2 a.m. and then resume "next day" at 5 a.m. Piranha member Masaru Shiga was reportedly extremely pissed off when they came to pull him out of his bed at 5 a.m. ("I worked till 2 a.m., and went drinking after that!") and even more so when his scene wasn't even filmed until afternoon! Saeki also said that one of the ways Toei AD's learned their craft was to go see the same Toei movie four times in a day in four different theatres and try to understand what they were seeing. Everyone also lamented that you could never make a movie this offensive anymore. It was also mentioned that the reason why the series got so crazy was because directors Yukio Noda and Makoto Naito, who took turns helming the films, started competing on who could make the stupidest movie ever.

Delinquent Boss: Wolves on Motorcycles
Image

Hiroe Sato (left) and Shunsuke Yamamoto (right) interviewing Toshimichi Sato (middle)
Image

Program chirashi
Image

Image

So that was it for this trip. Until next time (Laputa has already announced a massive Toei jidaigeki retrospective for January - March, Jinbocho will do a Yoshiko Sakuma retrospective in January, and Cinema Vera will have a Roman Porno retrospective in February-March).
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

HungFist wrote: 09 Dec 2024, 04:52 Teruo Ishii’s 100th Anniversary Retrospective at Cinema Vera.
I found a couple of more photos that didn't fit my original post, so thought I'd share them.

Sorry, the photos aren't very good since it's dark in the lobby and the lights are pointing straight to the posters, causing a lot of reflections.

Settlement (1967), Settlement Part 2 (1968) and Shameless: Abnormal and Abusive Love (1969)
Image

Fight to the Death in a Blizzard (1959)
Image

Boss's Ruin (1963) and An Outlaw (1964)
Image
herr_doktor_yes
Jackie Chan's Little Toe
Posts: 4
Joined: 28 Jul 2020, 12:12

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by herr_doktor_yes »

I love “Worthless to Confess” shares the top spot of pinky violence with “Terrifying Girls High School : Lynch Law Classroom”. Oshida Reiko is so energetic and like she was having the time of her life. The shots around Shinjuku are fantastic, and the plot is a lot of fun. Director Yamaguchi got it perfect for this last one. Tarantino must have seen this, too, because the last quarter is Kill Bill on a shoestring budget.
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

Toei Jidaigeki Festival, Yoshiko Sakuma Retrospective, and Science Fiction at Rockza (part 1/2)

Day 0: Thursday

My first Tokyo trip of the year started just like they usually do. Once again I’m running between Narita Airport Terminals 3 and 2, desperately trying to catch the final 23:11 train from T2, which I did succeed at but only at the expense of turning myself into Mr. Sweaty Gaijin. It was all thanks to Jetstar being 45 minutes late. At least I was wise enough to negotiate myself a better seat before the flight (after I informed THEM that THEIR flights is going to be late), otherwise I would never have made it to the train from the originally assigned back row seat.

Day 1: Friday

Friday was mostly for performing arts. I headed to Kawasaki Rockza where the show would start from 12:00. I had decided to see it not once but twice. Unlike in Asakusa, were the same program is repeated four times a day, in Kawasaki the dancer do different performances over the course of the day. Most have two or three different performances (A-B-A-B or A-B-C-A pattern) but some may have four. The main reason for staying so long was Hanai Shizuku. She was the fourth performer so I had decided to watch the show from 1.1 till 2.4.

Despite it being a Friday afternoon, the place was packed and the atmosphere was great. A strip theatre is a place you’d expect to be populated by all kinds of weirdos, but my experience is largely the opposite. As audience kept coming in before the start, I could see many people greet their pals and exchange words with people who had arrived earlier, including several female fans. The guy sitting next to me also started chatting to me and we ended up talking at least 20 minutes about dancers, economy, Sanada Hiroyuki, the war in Ukraine, and how a baby born to a Finnish-Japanese couple must be cute. But if that’s a bit too ordinary for your taste, I did spot this skinny middle aged Japanese dude who looked like Ohsugi Ren in a suit, and sat silently in the audience wearing sunglasses in the darkness from start to finish. He was plenty cool in his own old school way, and somehow seemed like a kind if a bit strange person, too.

Since it was early January, the show kicked off with a traditional New Year Sanbaso dance (the origin of this is in kabuki) by Tomosaka Rei and Aimi Hirose before the main program. This was originally scheduled only for the first three days, but it got extended for the entire 10 day course due to popular demand. The first dancer after the opening act was Tsubaki Rinne, whom I already praised last time. She’s always good, though I prefer it when she does darker stuff as opposed to the idol performances that she did this time. The latter is her bread and butter, but the former seem to reflect her personality in more interesting ways.

Up next was Tomosaka Rei. She’s an experienced dancer with an almost androgynous look, but she was dressed in kimono and when she greeted the audience on her knees I couldn’t help but to think of Fuji Junko in Red Peony Gambler. Oh and that wasn’t even the coolest thing. After the main dance (in Kawasaki and other similar places, but not in Asakusa) there’s a brief “open show”, which is just what you’d imagine. You know, for the viewers who repeatedly blinked at the wrong moment and failed to get their money’s worth. It may sound lewd, but it’s actually rather light-hearted and humorous. This is also when you can hand over a tip to the dancer. Anyway, each dancer has their own theme music that always plays during their open show. And Rei’s theme music was “Sky High”, which Wang Yu and George Lazenby fans should be more than familiar with from The Man from Hong Kong (1975)! Yeah, that kicked some serious ass and made me respect her whole lot more!

Image

The third performer was Hirose Aimi who likewise was dressed in Kimono, but she upped the game one notch by arming herself with a samurai sword! Good stuff. I forgot the rest.

Next up was the one I had been waiting for, Hanai Shizuku! She was already one of my favourite dancers before, and now she became no. 1. Her second round Momoiro Clover idol show in particular was absolutely amazing. Normally I don’t care for the idol type performances, but this was literally the most energized thing I have ever seen in my life, beating Omi Haruka’s 80s workout music video pastiche in “Breath” and Mamiya Nagi’s madcap K-pop performance in “Earth Beat” at Asakusa. Hanai is an incredible dancer who can really move around the stage effortlessly and perform difficult and incredibly fast moves with ease. She also seems like a very sympathetic girl who’s been trying to get past her natural shyness and introvert nature via the characters she plays on stage. I follow her on Twitter and whenever she’s not dancing, she’s usually taking care of animals at home, visiting a zoo, or going to a cat café… and thankfully recently also socializing with other dancers.

After Hanai there were two more performers. First up was Shino Meari, a 23 year old newcomer who only debuted a few months ago, but had already gathered a big fan base (the Polaroid line was loooong). I can understand: she danced well and was pretty. I wasn’t sure what to think of her costume though, which looked like something between a striped pyjama and a clown’s costume. Then finally we had the main star Hashimoto Mako, whom I had seen in Asakusa before, doing a cool mature oiran number.

It took about three hours to finish the first round, after which I remained seated for most of the second round. Everyone was worth seeing for the 2nd time, but it was Hanai who blew everybody’s mind. I think every single person in the audience, whether man or woman, became a Hanai fan. I also mustered up my courage and donated her a 1000 yen tip after she had finished her performance (that's the only tip I've given in my life) and received a “thank you” and a gentle handshake in return!

Oh and her theme music was “Born to be Wild (US link)”! Oh yeah! I left the theatre feeling like a million bucks.

Kawasaki doesn't sell stage photos (and my wife might murder me if I took a Polaroid with her) so here's Hanai in Asakusa instead!
Image

Alright, let’s move on to movies! Last year was a fantastic time for a Toei fan like me. Laputa Asagaya alone did The Yagyu Chronicles 1-9, Toei Oizumi Vol. 3 and The Deep World of Toei New Porno Returns retrospectives, not to mention the Toei heavy Fighting Women’s Collection and Tsunehiko Watase programs. 2025 kicked off in similarly great fashion with Laputa Hosting a three month Toei Jidaigeki Festival while Jimbocho Theater’s first program for 2025 was a four week Yoshiko Sakuma retrospective. Sakuma was actually my most watched actor/actress in 2024, and she’s off to a good start this year as well.

My Friday night’s film was Shinji Murayama’s Journey (旅路) (1967), which I didn’t want to miss. This was a pretty good melodrama that has fallen into obscurity against all expectations. I mean, it’s a starring vehicle for the great Tatsuya Nakadai with Sakuma playing the second biggest role. The story is adapted from a Yumie Hiraiwa novel following a young man working for the railway company in Hokkaido in the late 1920s and early 1930s, almost married to a woman he doesn’t particularly care for but rather finding her sister (Sakuma) far more interesting. Solid story, great production and fine cast make this an enjoyable film even if the genre isn’t right up my alley. The otherwise good 35mm print was a bit scratched and soft, but actually I suspect the latter was due to the projection rather than the print (more about this later).

Journey (1967), Koto—The Lake of Tears (1966) and A House in the Quarter (1963)
Image

Grass (1962), Tokyo’s Business District (1962) and Travelling in Party (1976)
Image

Fateful Birthplace (1961), Nikutai no seisô (1964) and A Lonely Gamble (1965)
Image

Image

Image

Image
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

Toei Jidaigeki Festival, Yoshiko Sakuma Retrospective, and Science Fiction at Rockza (part 2/2)

Day 2: Saturday

Saturday started much like Friday had ended, with Sakuma films in Jinbocho. First up was another rarity, Tadashi Imai’s near-excellent Toei noir White Cliffs (白い崖) (1960). Isao Kimura stars as a young immoral man fooling around with women and climbing corporate ladders in old man Eitaro Shindo’s company. He already gets his foot in the door by seducing the company president’s daughter (Yoshiko Sakuma), but when the old grump falls ill he sees his opportunity. There’s a fantastic scene where the newly married Sakuma tells a doctor how his dear father had reportedly given a blessing to their marriage and promoted her fiancé with his last dying words, and the doctor replies “how odd, people dying from a stroke like that usually don’t have last words”. The next few scenes, following the increasingly paranoid Sakuma on the city streets trying to find out if anything her husband has told her could be trusted, feature some incredible cinematography. The web of lies, seduction, and murder only gets more delirious from here on. The film is a bit on the long side (122m), but never less than captivating and ripe for re-discovery were Toei ever to make it more accessible. As of current, I don’t think there’s any other way to see the film than a 35mm print which thankfully screens in Tokyo every few years. The print was alright though a bit shaky and soft at the start but got better as the film went on.

A Story from Echigo (1964) and White Cliffs (1960)
Image

Next to was a re-watch of the wonderful Sonny Chiba love comedy Love School (恋愛学校 ) (1962), which I last viewed in Laputa less than two years ago in their Mayumi Ozora retrospective. I’ll be lazy and just copy my old comments. In the film best friends Yoshiko Sakuma and Mayumi Ozora go boy hunting (looking for dates) with the former at one point finding herself harassed by an old geezer. To the rescue comes young man Sonny Chiba, driving a vintage vehicle that looks like a slightly upgraded version of T-Ford. This is quite a progressive youth film for Toei, from trendy English title (spelled Renai gakko in kanji, but Love School is the intended furigana reading) to a charmingly modern heroine, and an underlying message 'follow your heart, not your family'. For Chiba fans these romantic films predating his tough mofo reputation by a decade are a most pleasant discovery.

I would assume the print was the same as in Laputa, however the projection seemed a little soft whereas I can clearly remember (and confirm from my old notes) that Laputa’s screening looked amazing. I wonder what gives. That being said, I’ve seen plenty of incredibly good looking projections in Jinbocho (e.g. The Man Who Stole the Sun, which remains one of my most cherished movie going memories. That film in 35mm was incredible! It’s a shame that the digital HD transfer pales so badly in comparison).

No poster for Love School, but at least a still was featured on the "Sakuma wall"
Image

I was supposed to head to Asakusa next, but plans changed a little and I found myself having just enough time for one more film. So I hopped on a train to Asagaya where Laputa was doing a Toei Jidaigeki Festival. The program runs January 2 through March and contains 38 films from late 50s to late 60s, though most pictures were from the early 60s. Seventeen Ninja, The Castle of Owls, Samurai Wolf 1 & 2, The Fort of Death, and several Tange Sazen films were some of the better known movies, while many were obscure enough not to have IMDb and Letterboxd pages.

I was there for Glorious Firefighter’s Standard (野狐笛 花吹雪一番纏) (1960), which sadly did not turn out to be a particularly exciting film. For a movie about a fire fighter, there was very little fire fighting in it. Instead, it plays out like a standard jidaigeki / yakuza tale about a reckless young man who discovers the hidden truth about his origin. Now, I’m not saying this was a bad picture, but it probably doesn’t have terribly much appeal for the more casual jidaigeki viewer or other viewers outside of genre fanatics. It is delightfully short at 76 minutes, though.

Image

Next up was something a bit special. My old university and movie viewing pal from Finland was coming Japan, and I had volunteered to take him and his wife to Asakusa Rockza. We were originally aiming for the 18:20 show, but since their flight was landing an hour late we opted for 20:30 Late Show instead (and that’s how I found time to fit that jidaigeki film into my program). I had advised them to show up at least 30 min early as I predicted the Saturday night show would get full, which it sure enough did. By my estimate there were about 170 spectators in the theatre, which only has 129 seats. So we had some 40 people standing throughout the two hour show.

Image

Image

The New Year show in Asakusa is something special. Firstly, it runs full 31 days instead of the usual 20 days. Secondly, the show was extended with a traditional “sanbaso” New Year celebratory dance (by Yukina, Higuchi Mitsuha and Nagasawa Yukino), which preceded the main program much like the one in Kawasaki. There were also various other special programs that accompanied the performance during its 4½ week run.

The show, titled “Wa” (“Circle”) was great as always. There were two particularly outstanding performances, Yukina’s last dance and Nagasawa’s miraculously good and ethereal science fiction piece that alone made the show a must see.

The first performance was called ουροβóρος. That's “Ouroboros”. The title was actually written in Greek alphabets and refers to an ancient Greek symbol of a snake eating its own tail, symbolizing the circle of life. It was a very colourful and visual piece utilizing flags, performed by ALLIY with Higuchi Mitsuha, Hara Miori and four back dancers. ALLIY actually got her flag a little tangled up at one point as they were making circles with the flags, but that did little harm to the performance. She’s also very good at getting the audience to play along to clap and wave their hands to the music by signalling the pace, and even randomly responding to some viewer’s heart signs – and doing all that while not wearing anything at all.

ALLIY (middle) with Higichi Mitsuha (left) and Hara Miori (right)
Image

I was glad to see one my very favourite dancers, Sara (who btw was celebrating her 50th birthday), in the second performance which was a beautiful and sad love story about a woman who loses her loved one (Minami Mayu) and is left alone with only a diamond to remind her of the lost love. I later found this was based on the movie “Somewhere in Time” (1980), starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. The storyline is about a modern day man (Minami in this performance) who travels back in time to the 19th century to meet and fall in love with a stage actress (Sara here) he admires. Low key, like the 2nd performance always is.

The third performance, called “New Year Song Show '25” was an upbeat Heisei pop number with Higuchi Mitsuha, Nagasawa Yukino and Hara Miori who soon got dubbed as “Asakusa Idol Group” on Twitter. This was basically a Asakusa version of the New Year's music programs on Japanese TV. It was a fun show but not particularly memorable, though Mitsuha is very pretty indeed.

The fourth performance however was something not to miss, Yukina’s last dance at Asakusa as the 29 year old announced she’d be retiring by March. It’s shame as she’s a good dancer and a lovely girl who also has loads of female fans. Asakusa did her honour with a Edo geisha performance about a woman who ends up killing four men who had taken a liking to her (this was loosely based on the 1959 novel The Scarlet Camellia, which was also adapted into a film in 1962 by Yoshitaro Nomura with Shima Iwashita in the lead role). She’s left alone with her beauty in the middle of the dead bodies (the four back dancers). The “bed scene” (that’s what the second half of the performance, the nude part, is called) was the most beautiful I have ever seen. The sadness, the incredible red color design (both the lights and her costume, what little of it remained at that point), and her stunning posture had such an impact that I think half of the audience were almost moved to tears and left in awe of the beauty. Another God level matching with music as well in the bed scene, with the song “Hana no ka ga michimichite”. This was true art, and a worthy send off to Yukina.

Yukina with one of the (non-strip) back dancers behind her
Image

Break time. I was hoping a preview of the February cast but no such luck. I know already five of the dancers (Komiyama Serina, Shiratori Swan, Nonoka, Kuroki Rei, Nagase Karen) despite the lack of official announcement, and I’m gonna throw a super pro guess that the remaining two are Irita Maaya and either Suzuki Chisato or Yazawa Yoko! The full cast will probably get announced before this post goes live, but I will leave this here anyway to prove I’m a genius… or a fool. (edit: the cast did get announced. Irita is the star just like I predicted! No Suzuki or Yazawa in the cast though, but instead Ando Moa, Hirose Aimi and Muto Tsugumi... yes, that's 9 people instead of the usual 7!) So what we got instead was an incredibly silly rakugo video with the dancers. I hear this week they've ditched the rakugo and instead play a Yukina tribute video.

Scene 5. “Jojo’s Bizarre Strippers” with Hara Miori and Higuchi Mitsuha, Nagasawa Yukino, Minami Mayu, Sara, Yukina abd ALLIY. I’ve actually never read the manga (nor watched the anime, or the Takashi Miike films) that this was based on (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure), so I probably lost some references. I read the costumes of the dancers were taken directly from the anime series. It was a fun performance and Hara’s boyish acting was fun to watch.

Next came another true highlight, and one of the most ambitious things I’ve ever seen in Asakusa. The performance was called “Become Human”. A scientist (Yukina) finds an abandoned android (Nagasawa Yukino) in a landfill full of broken androids, activates her, and teaches her to walk and act like a human. But as time passes, the scientist dies and the android is left alone. With no maintenance, her body begins to break down over the years. The final part of the performance is absolutely heartbreaking as we see the android, with one of her legs and other body parts no longer working, slowly limping away from the stage. And the music that played during that part was the last few minutes of “Himitsu” by World’s End Girlfriend which was perfect as fuck!

Image

Nagasawa physical acting was absolutely phenomenal. She’s a very flexible and athletic girl usually seen in uplifting pop performances, but here she does something extremely melancholic, existential and minimalist that nevertheless requires extremely precise control of your body. This isn’t some corny “robot dance”; her movements are incredibly subtle, like an artificial being desperately trying to pass for a human. The performance transcends the art form and could barely be defined as “dance”, and even less so as “strip show”. It’s one of the coolest things I’ve seen in Asakusa Rockza and the reason why I keep going there (it’s also the kind of thing that someone who’s never seen a show at Asakusa would never, ever imagine to see there). Someone on Twitter is said this performance should be nominated as the best science fiction piece of 2025 to compete against books and films. (P.S. I later read this performance was loosely based on a video game called “Detroit: Become Human”). Holy shit what a performance!

Finally, there was the 7th performance with the main star Minami Mayu with support from Sara, ALLIY and four back dancers. It was called Wa and was based on an ancient Shinto purification ceremony called oharae. It was a pretty cool performance, but I probably liked the bed scene best. Usually that part is the least interesting, but Minami has undeniable star charisma and the behind the scenes crew clearly worked hard to turn her into the very embodiment of human beauty. Her hair, costume and posture were perfect. My friend’s wife, who saw all these dancers for the first time and knew nothing about their backgrounds, also said she can see why Minami was the lead.

Also, because of this performance I can't get Bonjin sama out of my head.

The 1+7 performances were followed by the usual finale (this time with Japanese drums) featuring everyone and dancer introductions by MC Hara Miori, as well as an encore since it was a full house and the audience wouldn’t let the show end (this can only happen after the day’s last show, since the schedule doesn’t allow it earlier). Not only did we get the ladies do an extra round on stage, and Minami delivering her usual gratitude speech in Japanese and cute English (“If you enjoyed the show… come again tomorrow! And, bring your friend!"), and also interview ALLIY about her performance and how it relates to the theme of “Circle”.

From left: Higuchi, ALLIY, Hara, Minami, Sara, Yukina, Nagawasa
Image

So how did it go down with my friend and his wife? She enjoyed it, and he liked it so much he went to see it again two days later with his father! No kidding! I wish I could bring both my dad and mom to see the show, but I wouldn’t have the courage to attempt that. But I seriously I think any and everyone should go see the show, regardless of age, gender or sexual orientation. You’ll discover art, creativity and human beauty that you didn’t know existed. And yes, there are seven full naked women also.

Day 3: Sunday

Time to go fishing! Jaws, E.T. and Jurassic Park just got a theatrical IMAX re-release in Japan and since my local IMAX has worse picture quality than the cheapest pink theatre, I decided to catch the fish in Tokyo. Conveniently, 109 Cinemas Kawasaki was playing Jaws at 9 A.M. (conveniently for my schedule, not for my night sleep). Great film, but sadly only about 40 people in the audience when the theatre had seats for nearly 500, and frankly I was expecting more from the image quality. Of course it’s a digital presentation so you can’t expect much, but still it’s a fucking Spielberg film in IMAX. And yet, some of the 65 year old samurai films screening in 35mm film in Laputa had a better picture quality (dirtier and more scratched, yes, but sharper and more filmic).

Jaws ended just on time before Kawasaki Rockza's first show. It was only a 10 min walk anyway. The main reason for going to Kawasaki this time was Omi Haruka, who is one of my favourite dancers. Actually I was there only for her, so I had decided to watch only the first four performances as I had other engagements in the afternoon. She was great! Her dancing, her costumes, her interaction with the audience… and once the Polaroid time started I could see there were several female fans in the long line waiting for their turn to snap a photo of / with Haruka. But it wasn’t Haruka who broke the system, it was no. 4 performer YUME who caused the program to fall at least 20 minutes behind schedule with her Polaroid line that was “three walls long”. Well, she was a pretty girl and her dancing was fine too, sort of a darker and moodier pop performance than the idol numbers many other cute gals do.

I had a bit of human interaction too, as I ended up having a brief chat with the guy sitting next to me. I also could see that one of the women who had arrived too late to secure a seat had been standing for more than 90 minutes and I wanted to repay the general kindness you encounter at Kawasaki by offering her my seat. She disappeared just when I was about to get up, but I figured she might be in the lobby, so I left my bag on my seat and went to find her. Sadly, she was too shy to accept the seat (or to be so close to the dancers, she said) so I went back to grab my bag and headed to Tokyo again.

My first stop in Tokyo was Asakusa Rockza to see “Wa” again. As usual, the show was even better on a second time and I was practically in tears in both Yukina and Yukino’s performances. After Asakusa I headed to Shinjuku to meet my friend Finnish friend again. I was late because somehow I imagined I'd make the 1.6 km / 1 mile distance to Yamanote line station faster on foot than by using subway, which really wasn’t the case. But I made it there and we had some good ramen and beer.

Minami Mayu photo spot (New Year Version) in front of Asakusa Rockza
Image

I was sure I wouldn’t have time for another movie, but by the time we finished our ramen I realized I just might make it to Laputa’s 19:50 screening. So I run again, catch a train scheduled to arrive at Asagaya Station 19:48, and by some miracle made it to the film on time. I ran all the way to the theatre with my point card and 1000 yen bill in my hand, bought my ticket in record time, and ran upstairs. The staff member doing the pre-screening announcement was already descending the stairs, but took a few quick steps back when he saw the Finnish tornado heading his way. I thought I wouldn’t get a good seat arriving this late, but to my surprise there were only two other customers! I stormed to my favourite seat and sat down exactly three seconds before the film started. I still don’t know how I made it in two minutes. Or maybe more like 2 min 45 seconds assuming the film started 45 seconds late.

The film I watched was the 1960 Toei jidaigeki picture Rumble Festival (喧嘩まつり 江戸ッ子野郎と娘たち). This is not a widely seen film – it was missing from both IMDB and Letterboxd – but proved an enjoyable and compact 78 minute pack of action, romance and even a bit of singing. It’s a pleasingly old fashioned tale about a young master (Kotaro Satomi) who is deceived by villains, presumed dead, and then goes undercover as a commoner to work his way back up to face the villains and win back the girl. Beautiful black & white print too, easily more filmic and sharper than the Jaws IMAX presentation I had viewed in the morning!

Tange Sazen and the Princess (1961), Denshichi Torimonocho: Man without Shadow (1962) and Seven from Edo (1958)
Image

Shinran pt. 2 (1960) and Bloody Battle at Dawn (1959)
Image

Shinran (1960)
Image

Program chirashi
Image

Image

Image

And finally, my film ticket for the Saturday screening
Image

That was it for this trip. But I’ll be back in February for more Toei Jidaigeki as well Roman Porno at Cinema Vera! And Shin bungeiza just announced Horrors of Malformed Men and 13 Steps of Maki. Gonna be my fourth and third cinema viewings respectively for these films…
User avatar
HungFist
Bruce Lee's Fist
Posts: 11807
Joined: 14 Dec 2005, 15:50
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: Retro Cinemas and Cult Films in Japan

Post by HungFist »

I did quite a bit more research about the New Year show “Wa” that I saw at Asakusa Rockza, and turned out even more performances were based on films, novels and Greek mythology than I had realized. I created this brief guide to the performances to my wife who was on a business trip in Tokyo last week. Here’s a slightly modified (added more English) version. I’ve also update the earlier report with this info.

Image
(The Scarlet Camellia should say 1964, not 1965. Sorry)

Image

Image

The show ended on Jan. 31 with a bang. All four showings were completely full and there were apparently a million people lining up on the street.

The new show, called NINE, started on Feb. 1 in similarly popular fashion. I saw a person posting on twitter that they arrived 4½ hours before the doors open and were able to secure the 45th place in the line (people form a "trash line" in front of the theatre, leaving some bag or other personal belonging there to secure a place in the line).
Post Reply