is a 1967 Japanese
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
Noboru Nakamura
was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.
Biography
After graduating from Tokyo Imperial University in 1936, Nakamura joined the Shochiku film studios, working as an assistant director for Torajirō Saitō and Yasujirō Shimazu. He debute ...
. It is based both on the poetry collection ''Chieko-shō'' by Japanese poet and sculptor
Kōtarō Takamura
was a Japanese poet and sculptor.
Biography
Takamura was the eldest son of Japanese sculptor Takamura Kōun
was a Japanese sculptor who exerted himself for the modernization of wood carving and a professor of Tokyo School of Fine Arts, wh ...
, which reminisces about his wife
Chieko, and on the novel ''Shōsetsu Chieko-shō'' by
Haruo Satō.
The film was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
.
Cast
*
Shima Iwashita
is a Japanese actress who has appeared in about 100 films and many TV productions. She is married to film director Masahiro Shinoda, in whose films she has frequently appeared. She won the award for best actress at the 2nd Hochi Film Award for h ...
as Chieko Takamura
*
Tetsurō Tanba
Tetsurō, Tetsuro, Tetsurou or Tetsuroh (written: 哲郎, 哲朗, 鉄郎, 徹郎 or テツロー in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese anime director
*, Japanese anime director
*, Japane ...
as Kōtarō Takamura
* Jin Nakayama as Toyochika Takamura
*
Yōko Minamida
was a Japanese actress. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in November 2008, and a television documentary was made about her condition and the efforts of her husband, actor Hiroyuki Nagato, to care for her. She died in Tokyo.
Select ...
as Kazuko Tsubaki
*
Eiji Okada
was a Japanese film actor from Chōshi, Chiba. Okada served in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II and was a miner and traveling salesman before becoming an actor.
Internationally, his best-remembered roles include Lui ("him" in Fre ...
as Tsubaki
*
Mikijirō Hira
was a Japanese actor. Starting as a stage actor in the 1950s, he also worked in film and television and was active until the time of his death. From the 1970s he starred in several of Yukio Ninagawa's productions, including an acclaimed role as ...
as Ishii
*
Kaori Shima as Fumiko
* Takamaru Sasaki as
Takamura Kōun
was a Japanese sculptor who exerted himself for the modernization of wood carving and a professor of Tokyo School of Fine Arts, who dedicated himself to the education of the future generations.
Born in Tokyo as Nakajima Kōzō, he created the ...
* Tetsuo Ishidate as Tarō
* Kinuko Obata as Osato Sawada
*
Yoshi Katō
was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in more than 175 films between 1949 and 1988. He won the award for Best Actor at the 13th Moscow International Film Festival for his role in ''Hometown''. He married the actress Isuzu Yamada in 1950, but ...
as Sōkichi Naganuma
* Poems read by Hiroshi Akutagawa
Reception
In a contemporary review, "Whit." of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' described ''Portrait of Chieko'' as an "Exquisitely beautiful Japanese film", noting that Shima Iwashita "delivers a finely restrained performance of Oscar proportions, catching every nuance of character with consummate acting skill". The review went on to praise the cinematography by Hiroshi Takemura, Tatsuo Homada's art direction and Masaru Satō's score.
Other adaptations
Takamura's poems had already been adapted for film in 1957. The film, also titled ''Chieko-shō'', had been directed by
Hisatora Kumagai
was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.
Selected filmography
* 1932 ''Dōinrei, Mobilization Orders'' (lost)
* 1936 ''Takuboku, Poet of Passion''
* 1936 ''Many People''
* 1938 ''The Abe Clan (1938 film), The Abe Clan''
References
Exter ...
and starred
Sō Yamamura
was a Japanese actor and film director. He was also known by the name Satoshi Yamamura, while his actual birth name is Koga Hirosada. Yamamura graduated from University of Tokyo. In 1942, Yamamura and Isao Yamagata formed the ''Bunkaza Theatre ...
and
Setsuko Hara
Setsuko (written: or in hiragana) is a feminine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, later of Japan
*, actress
*, Japanese volleyball player
*, Japanese actress and model
*Setsuko Klossowska de Rola (born 1942), Japane ...
.
See also
*
*
References
External links
*
1967 films
1967 drama films
Japanese films
Films directed by Noboru Nakamura
Films based on poems
1960s Japanese films
{{1960s-Japan-film-stub