Kurihara Komaki and Tanaka Atsushiro 'Wangxiang'
Editor's words: (Continued from the previous article "Japanese character actress Tanaka Atsuyo, who shot 250 movies in her life, the love history of Azaki Inogo!") On June 26, 1940, at the Kyoto Railway Station, the train slowly pulled into the platform, and Kenji Mizoguchi (Editor's Note: a famous Japanese female film director) wore a straight suit, straightened his waist, stood solemnly on the platform, and rarely personally greeted the actor Tanaka Yushiro who came from Tokyo (Editor's Note: The actor played by Azaki Po in the movie "Wangxiang" that Chinese audiences are familiar with), this is the first time the two have met!
Tanaka Akeyo
The meeting was to cooperate with the new film "Wave Girl", in which Tanaka Seiyo played the wife of the famous musician Toyosawa Tuanpei in the literary music industry, a woman who sacrificed her life for her husband's career, and a typical female image in The Mizoguchi Kenji movie. Tanaka Silk, who had previously shown herself as a young girl, encountered a great test this time, not only to play the role of wife identity, to pinch the professional terminology of Bunraku, but also to meet the directorial characteristics of Kenji Mizoguchi "one scene and one shot", that is, only one long shot was used to complete a scene. This poses a great challenge to the acting skills of the actors, and all the performances: lines, actions, and positions must be completed in one go and cannot be interrupted.
Kenji Mizoguchi and Tanaka Shiro, "Wave Girl"
Strict and even harsh requirements just inspired Tanaka Seiyo's stubborn and competitive side, holding Tanaka Seiyo who accepted the challenge of Mizoguchi Kenji completed the performance brilliantly, and Kenji Mizoguchi, who has always been strict on the set, also showed a long-lost smile, "Wave Girl" was a great success, Tanaka also completed the transformation from a girl to a woman on the screen, broadened the drama path, and continued his acting career. After the screening, Kenji Mizoguchi personally bid farewell to Tanaka at the train station. Tanaka Yushiro, who tried his best for this performance, had a little reluctance in his heart, and the man in front of him, who was called "Devil's Gully", was smiling at this time, and did not see the frightening side of the set. As the train pulled out of the station, Tanaka Ariyoshi also felt a little lonely and empty in his heart.
After the end of the Pacific War, Kenji Mizoguchi was snubbed and his directorial career deteriorated until he and Tanaka Ayashiro joined forces again. At this time, the successful films cooperated include "Daughter of the Night", "Miss Ayou", "Lady Takekino", etc., the advent of one film after another, Mizoguchi Kenji through tanaka silk performance, finally showed the skills of the feminist masters of the past, Tanaka silk generation's career has gradually reached the peak, the relationship between the two has become closer, but stubborn they have always maintained a certain distance.
As a representative of Japanese actresses, Tanaka Visited Hollywood for the first time, and this visit has attracted much attention. On his return from the visit, Tanaka, who had not judged the situation, made a serious mistake. On January 19, 1950, under the gaze of the media, the film industry, and film fans, Tanaka Akasa walked out of the cabin, dressed in a modern dress, wearing sunglasses, and constantly sending flying kisses, which deeply stung the self-esteem of the Japanese people who had just been defeated by the United States.
Arishiro Tanaka and Hollywood star Betty David
Determined to help Tanaka out of her predicament, Kenji Mizoguchi tailored the script for "Lady Takeshino" and invited her to play the lead role. The smooth filming process swept away the haze of the past, followed by two works that were later considered to be the pinnacle of Kenji Mizoguchi's directing career- "Nishitsuru Generation Girl" and "Rain Moon Story" came out one after another, and the perfect cooperation between the two behind the screen finally made them reach the peak of their artistic careers. (The second of three in a row, to be continued)
The Daughter of the Crane Generation (1952) Italian edition