Only
Hollywood could turn the 47 Ronin into
a flop. It is considered the most adapted story in the history of film, but the
essence of its appeal eluded the much delayed studio bomb. There are plenty of
versions to try, including films by Mizoguchi and Ichikawa. However, it was
Teinosuke Kinugasa who helmed the first sound production. Best known for the
Criterion collected Gate of Hell,
Kinugasa was a prolific filmmaker comfortable working in many genres. Yet, his Chushingura, as 47 Ronin stories are
formally referred to, apparently exists only on one surviving print. If you
ever hope to see it, act now when Kinugasa’s Chushingura screens as part of Japan Speaks Out, MoMA’s current survey of early Japanese talking pictures.
Hopefully,
someone will invite Scorsese to the upcoming screening, because Kinugasa’s Chishingura demands the full restoration
treatment. The print in question can be a little hazy and crackly at times. It
is generally frustrating to see cinematic heritage in such a state, but there
is something weirdly eerie about the print’s sometimes ghostly look. Viewers
can easily work with it, if they are willing to.
For
the first sound treatment, Kinugasa was not about to make radical departures
from the familiar narrative. The unfortunate provincial Lord Asano is indeed
undermined by the scheming Lord Kira, inadvertently committing a social faux
pas in the Shogun’s palace due to the senior nobleman’s gamesmanship. Rather put
out by the situation, Asano draws his sword on Kira, which is an even greater
offense. Sentenced to commit seppuku, Asano’s clan is disbanded and his
holdings are confiscated by Kira. This does not sit well with his loyal
retainers, led by their commander, Oishi Kuranosuke. They will take their time
pretending to adopt new civilian lives, but eventually they will make their
move.
Even
with the less the optimal print, Kinugasa’s sense of visual composition is
striking. One can sometimes see a kinship with his expressionistic avant-garde silents,
A Page of Madness and Crossroads. (Seriously, this film needs
to go to the top of the preservation list.) He also gets some fine performances
from a cast that could not possibly be fully at home with talkies yet. Kinugasa
focuses more on the rank-and-file Ronin than the lords and the honor-bound
Kuranosuke (more of a Picard than a Kirk this time around). In fact, some of
those subplots are wonderfully tragic, such as the junior Ronin who falls in
love with a servant girl who transfers into Lord Kira’s service.
