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Cinema Ozu (23): The Lion Dance Doc

Documentary Short #1:
The Lion Dance / Kagamijishi
(1935)
Status: fully preserved and available on DVD in Asia
Script: N/A
Prints: multiple prints survive
Region1 DVD: none as of this writing

The Japanese government started to heavily push films that concerned old-school culture in the mid-30's. Sponsorship from the Japan Cultural Association made Ozu's only documentary and first sound film happen. The film did not receive a traditional theatrical premiere, but instead made the rounds to social clubs and schools. I feel it could be an indispensable learning tool for anyone wanting a short primer on Kabuki.

The subject of the 25 minute piece was exalted Kabuki performer Onoye Kikugoro VI. After a brief introduction, the rest of the film is an abbreviated Kikugoro performance.

Kikugoro as a young maid before being possessed by the Lion.

The Lion lives!

The Lion triumphant.

Cinema Ozu is a limited-run series of articles about the career and impact of Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu. My primary intent is to chronicle my own journey through his films, a fair number of which I have seen, but even more of which I have not. The most essential research tools I have used are David Bordwell's book Ozu and the Poetics of Cinema and definitive Ozu fansite "Ozu-san".

The series is also timed to celebrate the July 2010 U.S. release of The Only Son and There Was a Father as a DVD double-set by The Criterion Collection. You can find all entries in Cinema Ozu here. New to the series? It's best to start from the beginning.