is a Japanese film director known for starting the ''Sasori'' / ''Female Prisoner Scorpion'' series of 1970s
exploitation films starring
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 '' Stra ...
. Itō worked for
Toei Company
, simply known as Toei Company or Toei, is a Japanese entertainment company. Headquartered in Ginza, Chūō, Tokyo, it is involved in film and television production, distribution, video game development, publishing, and ownership of 34 movi ...
for most of his career. In 1972, he won a
Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Citation for his first film, ''
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion''.
He won
Picture of the Year at the
Japanese Academy Awards
The , often called the Japan Academy Prize, the Japan Academy Awards, and the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series of awards given annually since 1978 by the Japan Academy Film Prize Association (日本アカデミー賞協会, ''Nippon Akademii- ...
in 1985 with his film ''
Gray Sunset'',
a story of a man suffering from
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
. This thus became Japan's entry for the
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language 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 ...
instead of
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...
's ''
Ran'', which caused a slight uproar in Western media as many critics thought ''Ran'' had a real chance of winning whereas ''Gray Sunset'' was not even shortlisted. (Galbraith)
In 1995, he directed ''
Lupin III: Farewell to Nostradamus''. In 1998, he directed the World War II drama ''
Pride: The Fateful Moment'', presenting a sympathetic view of
Hideki Tōjō
was a Japanese general and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1941 to 1944 during the Second World War. His leadership was marked by widespread state violence and mass killings perpetrated in the name of Japanese nationalis ...
on trial at the
International Military Tribunal for the Far East
The International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE), also known as the Tokyo Trial and the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, was a military trial convened on 29 April 1946 to Criminal procedure, try leaders of the Empire of Japan for their cri ...
, attracting accusations of
revisionism.
Selected filmography
*''
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion'' (1972) (女囚701号 さそり)
*''
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41'' (1972) (女囚さそり 第41雑居房)
*''
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable'' (1973) (女囚さそり けもの部屋)
*''Inugami no tatari'' (1977) (犬神の悪霊)
*''
To Trap a Kidnapper'' (1982) (誘拐報道)
*''
Hakujasho'' (1983) (白蛇抄)
*''
Gray Sunset'' (1985) (花いちもんめ)
*''Labyrinth of Flower Garden'' (1988) (花園の迷宮)
*''
Lupin III: Farewell to Nostradamus'' (1995) (ルパン三世 くたばれ！ノストラダムス)
*''
Pride: The Fateful Moment'' (1998) (プライド 運命の瞬間)
*''Independence of Japan'' (2020)
Notes
References
*Galbraith, Stuart, IV. ''The Emperor and the Wolf: The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune''. Faber & Faber, 2002.
*
JMDb Listing(Japanese)
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ito, Shunya
1937 births
Living people
Japanese film directors
Pink film directors