is a 1978 Japanese

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

directed by

Yasuzo Masumura was a Japanese film director. Biography Masumura was born in Kōfu, Yamanashi. After dropping out of a law course at the University of Tokyo he worked as an assistant director at the Daiei Film studio, later returning to university to study ph ...

starring

Ryudo Uzaki is a Japanese musician, composer, and actor. His group, the Down Town Boogie-Woogie Band, was one of the most prominent 1970s Japanese rock music bands. He also composed many of Momoe Yamaguchi's songs with Yoko Aki. He is married to lyricist a ...

and

Meiko Kaji is a Japanese actress and singer. Since the 1960s, she has appeared in over 100 film and television roles, most prominently in the 1970s with her most famous roles as outlaw characters, best known for her performances in the film series ''Alley ...

based on the

Chikamatsu was a Japanese dramatist of jōruri, the form of puppet theater that later came to be known as bunraku, and the live-actor drama, kabuki. The ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' has written that he is "widely regarded as the greatest Japanese dramatis ...

play of the same name Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

Plot

The plot follows closely the original play. Tokubei (

) works as a soy-sauce maker. He falls in love with indentured prostitute O-Hatsu (

). After O-Hatsu's indenture is bought by a wealthy patron, they plan to commit suicide.

Cast

- Tokubei *

- O-Hatsu *

Hisashi Igawa Hisashi Igawa (井川比佐志 born 17 November 1936) is a Japanese actor who has appeared in such films as Akira Kurosawa's '' Dodesukaden'', ''Ran'' and ''Madadayo''. He starred in Abe Kōbō's production of ''The Man Who Turned Into A Stick'' ...

- Kyuemon *

Sachiko Hidari was a Japanese actress and film director. Life Hidari was born in Asahi, Toyama, as the eldest of 8 children. She graduated from Tokyo Women's College of Physical Education and gave her film debut in 1952 in ''Wakaki hi no ayamachi''. Betwee ...

- O-Sai * Isao Hashimoto - Kuheiji * Gen Kimura - Kichibei

Production

Masumura's treatment of the play is quite literal, and was considered by some (McDonald, 1994) the most faithful screen adaptation of any of Chikamatsu's plays second only to Kurisaki's puppet version two years later. Masumura's casting of Uzaki, a rock star, and Kaji, a young idol, signaled an energetic approach to the story, though the film was restrained by Masumura's standards and did not contain the elements of abnormal behaviour or attack on Japanese society for which Masumura was known. Instead Masumura adopted a theatrical but "sardonic" (Sultanik, 1986) approach with emphasis through concise editing and close-ups. The crew worked hard to a tight budget, and the lead actress Kaji had been so keen to work with Masumura that she took the role with no guarantee of any payment. The cast and crew finished the filming in 19 days. Kaji recalls that the last 3 days were done with actors and crew working through the nights.

Critical reception

Lead actress Meiko Kaji won several acting awards for her performance, including the Blue Ribbon Award and

Hochi Film Award The are film-specific prizes awarded by the ''Hochi Shimbun , previously known as , is a Japanese-language daily sports newspaper. In 2002, it had a circulation of a million copies a day. It is an affiliate newspaper of ''Yomiuri Shimbun''. ...

for best actress. The film showed in New York under the English title "The Love Suicides at Sonezaki,"New York Magazine Vol. 15, n° 26–28 June 1982 - Page 64 "June 23, 6 p.m.: "The Man Who Stole the Sun" (1979) by Kauhiko Hasegawa; 9 p.m.: "The Love Suicides at Sonezaki" (1977) by Yasuzo Masumura. June 24, 8 p.m.: "The Family" (1974) by Satsuo Yamamoto. and at the Montreal Festival as "Double Suicide Of Sonezaki."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Love Suicides at Sonezaki Jidaigeki films 1978 films 1970s historical romance films Films directed by Yasuzo Masumura 1970s Japanese films Japanese historical romance films 1970s Japanese-language films