Rice (, Kome) is a 1957 Japanese drama film directed by Tadashi Imai.[2] It was entered into the 10th Cannes Film Festival.[3]

Rice
Original Japanese poster.
Directed byTadashi Imai
Written byYasutarō Yagi
Produced byNobusaburō Honda
Mitsuo Makino
Seiichi Yoshino
StarringShinjirō Ehara
CinematographyShunichirō Nakao
Edited byYoshiki Nagasama
Music byYasushi Akutagawa
Production
company
Release date
  • 4 March 1957 (1957-03-04)
[1]
Running time
118 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

It is also known by the title The Rice People.[4]

Plot

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Two young men, Tsuguo and Senkichi, return to their small home town during the rice planting festival, and try to make a living as fishermen.

Cast

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Production

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Eastman Color was used for the photography, which Viola Swisher of the Los Angeles Mirror described as having more prominence than the storyline.[5]

Awards

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1957 Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress Yūko Mochizuki.[6]

Reception

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According to Swisher, with the exception of a "poignant" ending, the "coherence in direction and editing" was subpar "[b]y Western standards".[5]

Pat King of the San Francisco Examiner praised the "superb" photographic work and the "real" scenery, though she argued American viewers at the time would have found difficulties with how the film jumps between themes.[7]

Monte Ito of The Honolulu Advertiser wrote that the film may cause some viewers to perceive it as boring while other viewers may like the realism.[8]

References

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  1. ^ "米". Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese). Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  2. ^ "今井正 (Tadashi Imai)". kotobank (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  3. ^ "KOME". festival-cannes.com. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 8 February 2009.
  4. ^ Ariyasena Jayasekera Gunawardene; Lesṭar Jēms Pīris; Prasad Pereira (2005). LJP, Lester James Peries Life and Work. p. 98. ISBN 9789558008058.
  5. ^ a b Swisher, Viola (26 December 1957). "Gentle Story of Japan Told in 'Rice'". Los Angeles Mirror. Los Angeles. p. Part B p. 4. - Clipping at Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "ブルーリボン賞ヒストリー (8th Blue Ribbon Awards)" (in Japanese). Cinema Hochi. Archived from the original on 22 October 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  7. ^ King, Pat (20 September 1958). "Japan's Exported 'Rice' On the Rio Screen". San Francisco Examiner. San Francisco. p. Section II p. 20. - Clipping at Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Ito, Monte (11 August 1963). "'Rice' Film Held 'Spellbinding'". The Honolulu Advertiser. p. D7. - Clipping at Newspapers.com.
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