Movie Cosmos - Double Suicide

Description:

Successful and married with children, paper-mill owner Jihei knows better than to contradict the strict social and moral codes of 18th-century Japan. But when he meets the lovely courtesan Koharu, he becomes a man obsessed. Koharu returns his love, even foregoing other customers while Jihei schemes to somehow buy her freedom. His efforts yield ruinous consequences for his business and his family life, and Koharu is meanwhile purchased by another client.

Top Cast >

Kichiemon Nakamura II

As Jihei

Shima Iwashita

As Koharu / Osan

Hōsei Komatsu

As Tahei

Yūsuke Takita

As Mogoemon

Kamatari Fujiwara

As Owner of the Yamatoya

Yoshi Katō

As Gosaemon

Shizue Kawarazaki

As Osan's Mother

Tokie Hidari

As Osugi

Sumiko Hidaka

As Proprietress

Takashi Sue

As Store Owner

Masashi Makita

As Guest

Makoto Akatsuka

As Sangoro

Unko Uehara

As Otama

Shinji Tsuchiya

As Kantaro

Kaori Tozawa

As Osue

Jun Hamamura

Masatsugu Makita

Top Crew >

Masahiro Shinoda

Writer, Director, Producer

Toru Takemitsu

Writer, Original Music Composer

Kiyoshi Awazu

Production Design

Hideo Nishizaki

Sound Recordist, Sound

Taeko Tomioka

Writer

Akira Suzuki

Sound Effects Editor

Monzaemon Chikamatsu

Original Story

Yôko Takahashi

Makeup Artist

Makoto Koizumi

Assistant Director

Masayuki Motomochi

Assistant Director

Kiyoshi Hashimoto

Costume Design

Masao Katô

Production Manager

Tōichirō Narushima

Director of Photography

Shigeyuki Nakano

Assistant Director

Akiyoshi Kanda

Set Decoration

Kōhei Oguri

Assistant Director

Dai Arakawa

Set Decoration

Masayuki Nakajima

Producer

Tadao Takai

Sound Effects Editor

Reviews:

talisencrw (9/10)

Even though I'm Christian and have always been brought up considering the act of suicide a 'taboo' subject, I have always held great respect for both the Japanese way of doing so to save face, and the thoroughly romantic notion, say, from the likes of 'Romeo and Juliet' (with Shakespeare's writings being probably the cornerstone of Western thought)--so from two completely different cultural perspectives--that a life without the one you love is not worth living.

I had previously only seen two of Masahiro Shinoda's other works for The Criterion Collection--the earlier works 'Pale Flower' and 'Samurai Spy', and I don't know if it was on purpose by the company in selecting the titles, but I marveled at the breathtaking variety of his scripts, all from such a short timespan (1964-69). Being a patron of the theatre (in many different modes) and as anthropologically cosmopolitan in my approach to life as is conceivable, I salute Shinoda with a profound respect, and look forward to investigating as many of his other works as possible.

2016-09-22