HOME



picture info

Toshirō Mifune
was a Japanese actor and producer. The recipient of numerous awards and accolades over a lengthy career, he is widely considered one of the greatest actors of all time. He often played hypermasculine characters and was noted for his commanding screen presence in the Cinema of Japan, Japanese film industry. Although he amassed more than 180 screen credits, Mifune is best known for his 16 collaborations with director Akira Kurosawa. These collaborations included Kurosawa's critically acclaimed ''jidaigeki'' films such as ''Rashomon'' (1950), for which Mifune won the Lion of Saint Mark, San Marco Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, ''Seven Samurai'' (1954), ''Throne of Blood'' (1957), ''The Hidden Fortress'' (1958), and ''Yojimbo'' (1961), for which Mifune won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival and was recognised at the Blue Ribbon Awards as Best Actor. He also portrayed Miyamoto Musashi in Hiroshi Inagaki's ''Samurai Trilogy'' (1954–1956), Lord Toran ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Qingdao
Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to Germany. For the Germans Qingdao (Tsingtau) was a strategic trade center, port and base for its East Asia Squadron, allowing the German navy to project dominance in the Pacific. In 1914, following the outbreak of World War I, Japan occupied the city and the surrounding province during the Siege of Tsingtao. In 1915, China agreed to recognize Japan's special position in the territory through what became known as the Twenty-One Demands. In 1918, the Chinese government, under the control of the warlord Duan Qirui, secretly agreed to Japanese terms in exchange for a loan. Following the First World War, during the Paris Peace Conference, Japan secured agreements with the Allied powers to recognize its claim to the areas in Shandong, which in ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the "Big Five" International film festivals worldwide, which include the Film festival#Notable festivals, Big Three European Film Festivals (Venice, Cannes, Berlin), alongside the Toronto International Film Festival in Canada and the Sundance Film Festival in the United States. In 1951, FIAPF formally accredited the festival. Founded by Giuseppe Volpi, member of the National Fascist Party and grandfather of producer Marina Cicogna, in Venice in August 1932, the festival is part of the Venice Biennale, one of the world's oldest exhibitions of art, created by the Venice City Council on 19 April 1893. The range of work at the Venice Biennale now covers Italian and international art, architecture, dance, music, theatre, and cinema. These works ar ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Samurai Banners
is a Japanese samurai drama film released in 1969. It was directed by Hiroshi Inagaki and is based on the novel ''Furin kazan'' by Yasushi Inoue. Plot Yamamoto Kansuke (Toshiro Mifune) is a general of warlord Takeda Shingen ( Nakamura Kinnosuke), whose titular red banners are his trademark. Yamamoto has a ruthless but effective approach to battle and politics, and advises Takeda Shingen on almost everything he does, including the assassination of Suwa Yorishige ( Akihiko Hirata). Of Lord Suwa's household, Princess Yu (Yoshiko Sakuma) refuses to commit suicide, and the film comes to center on a love triangle between the lord, his general, and the princess. The film ends with the fourth Battle of Kawanakajima, in which Yamamoto erroneously believes his battle tactics have failed and commits a pincer attack, but is killed in action before the battle is won. Cast * Toshiro Mifune – Kansuke Yamamoto * Yoshiko Sakuma – Princess Yuu * Nakamura Kinnosuke – Shingen Take ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


The Sands Of Kurobe
is a 1968 Japanese drama film directed by Kei Kumai. It is an adaptation of the novel The Sun of Kurobe (黒部の太陽; Kurobe no Taiyō) that dramatizes the construction of the massive Kurobe Dam, the tallest dam in Japan. The film was Japan's submission to the 41st Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee. Produced by its stars Toshiro Mifune and Yujiro Ishihara, the film's first run in cinemas lasted for a month, significantly longer than the week or ten days that films at that time usually ran in Japan. Cast * Toshiro Mifune as Kitagawa * Yujiro Ishihara as Iwaoka * Osamu Takizawa as Otagaki * Takashi Shimura as Ashimura * Shūji Sano as Hirata * Jūkichi Uno as Mori * Ryūtarō Tatsumi as Genzō * Isao Tamagawa as Sayama * Takeshi Katō as Kunikida * Sumio Takatsu as Ōno * Tappie Shimokawa * Asao Sano * Mizuho Suzuki as Senda * Eijirō Yanagi as Fujimura * Akira Yamanouchi as Tsukamoto * Masao Shim ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Isoroku Yamamoto
was a Marshal Admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II. He commanded the fleet from 1939 until his death in 1943, overseeing the start of the Pacific War in 1941 and Japan's initial successes and defeats before his plane was shot down by U.S. fighter aircraft over New Guinea. Yamamoto graduated from the Imperial Naval Academy in 1904 and served in the Russo-Japanese War, where he lost two fingers at the Battle of Tsushima. He later studied at Harvard University in the United States and was appointed naval attaché to the Japanese embassy in Washington. His experiences convinced him that naval power depended on access to oil and industrial capacity, and that Japan thus had little hope to defeat the U.S. in a war. He was one of the first naval leaders to conclude that naval aviation and aircraft carriers would play a decisive role in any future conflict. In 1936, Yamamoto was appointed navy vice minist ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Shōgun (1980 Miniseries)
''Shōgun'' is a 1980 American historical drama miniseries based on James Clavell's 1975 novel of the same name. The series was produced by Paramount Television and first broadcast in the United States on NBC over five nights between September 15 and 19, 1980. It was written by Eric Bercovici and directed by Jerry London, and stars Richard Chamberlain, Toshiro Mifune, and Yoko Shimada, with a large supporting cast. Clavell served as executive producer. The miniseries is loosely based on the adventures of English navigator William Adams, who journeyed to Japan in 1600 and rose to high rank in the service of the shōgun. It follows fictional John Blackthorne's (Chamberlain) experiences and political intrigues in feudal Japan in the early 17th century. ''Shōgun'' received generally positive reviews from critics and won several accolades, including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series, the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama, and a ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Samurai Trilogy
The ''Samurai Trilogy'' is a film trilogy directed by Hiroshi Inagaki and starring Toshiro Mifune as Musashi Miyamoto and Kōji Tsuruta as Kojirō Sasaki. The films are based on '' Musashi'', a novel by Eiji Yoshikawa about the famous duelist and author of ''The Book of Five Rings''. The three films are: * '' Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'' (1954) * '' Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple'' (1955) * '' Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island'' (1956) Together, they are a trilogy following the character growth of Musashi from brash—yet strong—young soldier to thoughtful and introspective samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d .... The choreography for the films was by Yoshio Sugino of the Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū. Reception and influence ''Samurai I'' w ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Hiroshi Inagaki
was a Japanese filmmaker who worked on over 100 films in a career spanning over five decades. He is one of the most successful and critically acclaimed filmmakers in the history of Japanese cinema, having directed several ''jidaigeki'' epics such as the 1954 Academy Award-winning film '' Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'', and its two sequels (1955's '' Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple'' (1955) and 1956's '' Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island''). Career Born in Tokyo as the son of a shinpa actor, Inagaki appeared on stage in his childhood before joining the Nikkatsu studio as an actor in 1922. Wishing to become a director, he joined Chiezō Kataoka's Chiezō Productions and made his directorial debut with ''Tenka taiheiki'' (1928). Returning to Nikkatsu, he continued making jidaigeki and participated in the Naritaki Group of young filmmakers such as Sadao Yamanaka and Fuji Yahiro who collaboratively wrote screenplays under the made up name "Kinpachi Kajiwara". Like others in ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Miyamoto Musashi
, was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (sword saint) of Japan. He was the founder of the Niten Ichi-ryū (or Nito Ichi-ryū) style of swordsmanship, and in his final years authored and ''Dokkōdō'' (獨行道, ''The Path of Aloneness''). Both documents were given to Terao Magonojō, the most important of Miyamoto's students, seven days before Musashi's death. ''The Book of Five Rings'' focuses on the character of his Niten Ichi-ryū school in a concrete sense; his own practical martial art and its generic significance. ''The Path of Aloneness'', on the other hand, deals with the ideas that lie behind it, as well as his life's philosophy in a few short aphoristic sentences. It is believed that Miyamoto was a friend of Mizuno Katsushige, Mizuno Katsunari, a Tokugawa shogunate gene ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Blue Ribbon Awards
The are film-specific prizes awarded solely by movie critics and writers in Tokyo, Japan, established in 1950 by , established under the name of the "Association of Tokyo Film Journalists Award", which was formed mainly by film reporters from the Yomiuri Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun, and Mainichi Shimbun. Currently The Association is made up of film reporters from seven sports newspapers in Tokyo: Sports Hochi (previously Hochi Shimbun), Sankei Sports, Sponichi, Daily Sports, Tokyo Sports, Tokyo Chunichi Sports, and Nikkan Sports. History Film reporters from the Yomiuri Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun, and Mainichi Shimbun took the lead in calling other reporters to "look back on the film industry over the past year, discuss the results, and summarize them". The first award ceremony was held on March 22, 1951 at the Tokyo Theater in Chuo, Tokyo. Finances were scarce, and the only thing given to the winners was a handwritten certificate tied with a matching blue ribbon, hence the name "Blue ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Volpi Cup For Best Actor
The Volpi Cup for Best Actor () is the principal award given to actors at the Venice Film Festival and is named in honor of Count Giuseppe Volpi di Misurata, the founder of the Venice Film Festival. The name and number of prizes have been changed several times since their introduction, ranging from two to four awards per edition and sometimes acknowledging both leading and supporting performances. History The festival was officially competitive for the first time in 1934. The acting award was named ''Grande medaglia d'oro dell'Associazione Nazionale Fascista dello Spettacolo per il migliore attore'' (Great Gold Medal of the National Fascist Association for Entertainment for the Best Actor). After a four-year hiatus caused by the war, the festival was once again competitive in 1947. The acting award in the immediate post-war period was named ''Premio Internazionale per il migliore attore'' (International Award for the Best Actor). The festival was again competitive in 1980 but th ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Yojimbo
is a 1961 Japanese samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa, who also co-wrote the screenplay and was one of the producers. The film stars Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yoko Tsukasa, Isuzu Yamada, Daisuke Katō, Takashi Shimura, Kamatari Fujiwara, and Atsushi Watanabe. In the film, a ''rōnin'' arrives in a small town where competing crime lords fight for supremacy. The two bosses each try to hire the newcomer as a bodyguard. Based on the success of ''Yojimbo'', Kurosawa's next film, '' Sanjuro'' (1962), was altered to incorporate the lead character of this film. In both films, the character wears a rather dilapidated dark kimono bearing the same family ''mon''. The film was released and produced by Toho on April 25, 1961. ''Yojimbo'' received highly positive reviews, and, over the years, became widely regarded as one of the best films by Kurosawa and one of the greatest films ever made. The film grossed an estimated US$2.5 million worldwide with a budget of ¥90.87 ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]