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Sansho Dayu/Gion Bayashi [Masters of Cinema] [1953] [1954]
![Sansho Dayu/Gion Bayashi [Masters of Cinema] [1953] [1954]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51rgr3vnZrL._SL160_.jpg)
RRP: £23.99
Our Price: £13.49 (subject to change)
Not one for me
Review date: 2008-05-28 Rating: 2 out of 10
Sansho dayu
I hate to disagree, but I found this film to drag. There wasn't a lot to the plot and one thing I noticed was how bland the directing was.
Obviously, some people really rate this film and therefore I expect a lot of people will disagree with me, but that's just my opinion. I'm not a hater of foreign films and slow pacing is not normally an issue for me either - as long as the scene has something to wallow in.
I have no complaints about the acting or the overall professionalism of the film, it was just in my opinion overly slow paced for such a thin plot, it didn't capture my imagination and it was nothing spectacular to look at.
Some people may find this a `life-changing experience' but I can't imagine why.
Gion Bayashi was slightly more watchable, but overall suffered from the same issues.
Sorry, not keen at all!
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Reviews
Gion Bayashi is no mere filler either
Review date: 2007-12-13 Rating: 10 out of 10
I bought this for the justly famous Sansho Dayu, and knew nothing about the "B side" Gion Bayashi. This latter film is in fact well worth the price by itself. Kogure Michiyo as Miyoharu, the elder geisha, is mesmerising and the film packs an astonishing slow-burn punch (if there is such a concept). It's got a lot of interest on a purely cultural level, with all the geisha stuff, and is as visually beautiful as you'd expect from the director of Ugetsu. But what knocks you flat is the power of Miyoharu's story: an abused woman vastly the moral superior of everyone around her, with that extraordinary, apparently passive, strength of so many of the classic Japanese heroines.
Life-changing experience
Review date: 2007-12-07 Rating: 10 out of 10
So...where are all the gushing reviews?
Sansho Dayu is easily one of the best films ever made, and we are incredibly lucky that it has finally been released by Masters of Cinema, the best producers of DVDs in this country (along with the BFI, perhaps). In some ways, this is an even better edition than the one Criterion released in America back in May.
You will never forget the first time you see this film; words can't begin to do justice to its visual beauty and its emotional impact. It stands comparison with the best films of Kurosawa and Ozu - with the best films of any director, come to that. Coupled with the almost equally marvellous (though smaller in scale) Gion Bayashi, this is a must-own DVD set for any self-respecting film buff. It is worth at least twice as much as Amazon are currently charging for it.
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Michiyo Kogure
Kinuyo Tanaka
Yoshiaki Hanayagi
Ayako Wakao
Creators:
Kinuyo Tanaka (Primary Contributor)
Michiyo Kogure (Primary Contributor)
Director(s):
Recording label: Eureka Entertainment Ltd
Manufacturer: Eureka Entertainment Ltd
EAN: 5060000500325
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 2
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2007-11-19
Audience rating: Parental Guidance
Region code: 2
Running time: 210 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1953
Language: English (Original Language)