When
revenge is promised, revenge must be delivered.
One villainous samurai learns this the hard way in Tsuruya Nanboku’s
classic Kabuki drama. It was a lesson
that would be repeated in thirty screen adaptations. This one is considered the best, but it has
not been widely screened in America, as is true for most of the upstart genre
studio Shintoho’s late 1940s to early 1960’s releases. In its New York premiere, Nobou Nakagawa’s The Ghost Story of Yotsuya launches the
Japan Society’s 2013 Globus Film Series, Intothe Shintoho Mind Warp: Girls, Guns & Ghosts.
Iwa’s
father is not about to let his daughter marry Iemon. It is not just because he is a position-less
samurai. He can tell the man is a bit of
a cad. Unfortunately, the proud ronin
reacts badly when rebuffed yet again.
Killing the man and a well heeled associate, Iemon finds himself
beholden to the crafty servant Naosuke to back up his story. Swearing to Iwa he will avenge her father, he
instead dispatches her sister Sode’s intended, again with the help of the
insidious Naosuke.
As
the years pass, Iemon claims to be pursuing retribution in much the same way
O.J. was searching for the “real killer.”
By now, the sociopathic ronin has tired of Iwa and the constant hassling
to make due on his promises. Instead, he
covets Ume, the daughter of a wealthy clan leader and the position she would
bring. Of course, good old Naosuke has
the answer: a poison that first disfigures and then kills. Inviting over Takuetsu, her torch-carrying
admirer, to complete the frame-up, Iemon completes the evil deed and embarks on
a new life with Ume. However, when Iwa
pledged revenge from beyond the grave, she was not kidding.
Yotsuya probably should
be classified as a horror film, but by the time Iwa and Takuetsu rise from the
dead, viewers are ready to through in their lot in with the angry spirits. In the tradition of E.C. Comics, Yotsuya is a case of bad things
happening to bad people. Nonetheless, it
is all kinds of creepy and atmospheric.
Frankly,
it is rather flummoxing that Nakagawa is not more renowned amongst genre
cineastes. It really ought to rank with
Shindo’s Kuroneko and Onibaba. While many focus on Iwa’s grisly transformation,
Nakagawa’s patience introducing the supernatural elements, effectively cranks
up the tension before the cathartic release.
Arguably, it is also a comparatively feminist genre outing, with Iwa’s
sister Sode facing their nemesis in the climatic fight sequence, sword in hand,
along with an ally making a surprise reappearance.
As Iwa, Katsuko Wakasugi has one of the all time great and gruesome death scenes. She would also be quite scary as an angry ghost, were we not so primed for Iemon’s comeuppance. In a way, the final third of Yotsuya is like a Grudge film in which viewers root for the supernatural force. Likewise, Noriko Kitazawa is appealingly earnest and swings a credible sword as sister Sode. Shuntarô Emi is hissable loathsome as Naosuke, in an enjoyable genre bad guy kind of way. Oddly, Shigeru Amachi (whom Nakagawa would send to Hell as the protagonist of Jigoku) is a bit of a cold fish as Iemon. It is hard to understand why Iwa or Ume would be charmed by him, but his karmic beatdown is certainly satisfying.
As Iwa, Katsuko Wakasugi has one of the all time great and gruesome death scenes. She would also be quite scary as an angry ghost, were we not so primed for Iemon’s comeuppance. In a way, the final third of Yotsuya is like a Grudge film in which viewers root for the supernatural force. Likewise, Noriko Kitazawa is appealingly earnest and swings a credible sword as sister Sode. Shuntarô Emi is hissable loathsome as Naosuke, in an enjoyable genre bad guy kind of way. Oddly, Shigeru Amachi (whom Nakagawa would send to Hell as the protagonist of Jigoku) is a bit of a cold fish as Iemon. It is hard to understand why Iwa or Ume would be charmed by him, but his karmic beatdown is certainly satisfying.
