kagablog

January 13, 2010

julien sévéon on shabondama elegy

Filed under: dionysos andronis, 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy), film — ABRAXAS @ 8:54 am

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a big thank you to dionysos andronis for sending this article as a digital file!

December 15, 2009

shabondama elegy trailer (tokyo elegy)

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 6:17 pm


edited with j.p. luijsterburg at phantavision
thank you to catherine henegan for making this embedding possible

this is my own personal favourite work. i love the fred eaglesmith song. slow, haunting, brooding, menacing. somewhere along the line i lost my personal 35mm print of this trailer and i was delighted to discover it on the internet today. this was the last time that i worked with j.p. luijsterburg, an editor with whom i had enjoyed a very rich working relationship from my second year at the film academy. we worked together for 7 good years. he is one of the most in-demand editors in the netherlands today.

October 2, 2009

Tokyo Elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 1:44 am

A full-length from Ian Kerkhof, a South-African/Dutch film-maker who usually makes transgressive shorts. An aggressive Dutch man on the run from the Yakuza is at a wild and desperate end of his rope when he meets a neurotically submissive, real-life porn-star in a bar. They get together through desperate lust and needs, their psychology explored through flashbacks, horribly pretentious monologues, perversion and censored hardcore sex. The cinematography is all over the place, using filters, superimpositions, wild movements and colors, but in a raw, gritty way like a Richard Kern movie. A blend of art and hardcore porn that both studies and revels in perversions and neurotic relationships, and which doesn’t really work, but is, nevertheless, somewhat interesting.

this review first appeared on thelastexit.net

Otomo Yoshihide x Ian Kerkhof - Film Music From Shabondama Elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 1:32 am

Label:
Station Kids, Eyewill
Catalog#:
SKCA-1002, no catalog #
Format:
CD, Album
Country:
Japan
Released:
20 Oct 1999
Genre:
Jazz
Style:
Free Improvisation
Tracklist
1 Bath Cream 1 2:51
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
2 Police Impossible 1 2:01
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
3 Shabondama -Bubbly Version- 0:41
Composer - Shimpei Nakayama
4 Tattoo 3:28
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
5 El Derecho De Vivir En Pas (aka: Heiwa Ni Ikiru Kenri) 2:01
Composer - Victor Jara
Performer - Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet
6 Elegy -New Jazz Version- 5:56
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
Performer - Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet
7 Bath Cream 2 2:43
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
8 Shabondama -Electro Version- 0:59
Composer - Shimpei Nakayama
9 Sad Theme -Film Version- 2:30
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
10 Black And White 5:12
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
11 Bath Cream 3 2:50
12 Somber Anthem 2:22
13 Sad Theme -New Jazz Version- 3:56
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
Performer - Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet
14 Shabondama -Solo Sax Version- 1:09
Composer - Shimpei Nakayama
15 Elegy -Film Version- 2:22
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
16 Police Impossible 2 3:20
Composer - Otomo Yoshihide
17 Shabondama -Ending Version- 2:27
Composer - Shimpei Nakayama
Performer - Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet
Credits
Alto Saxophone - Tsugami Kenta (tracks: 5, 6, 13, 17)
Basic Concept - Ian Kerkhof
Contra-bass - Mizutani Hiroaki* (tracks: 5, 6, 13, 17)
Drums, Pocket Trumpet - Yoshigaki Yasuhiro* (tracks: 5, 6, 13, 17)
El-bass - Nasuno Mitsuru* (tracks: 1, 2, 9, 15, 16)
Guitar, Turntables And Electronics - Otomo Yoshihide (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 7-12, 15, 16)
Mpc-3000 & Effects, Dx-7, Organ, Guitar - Masuko Tatsuki* (tracks: 1-3, 7, 8, 10, 11, 16)
Recorded And Mixed By - Naoaki Kose (tracks: 1-3, 7-9, 11, 14-16) , Otomo Yoshihide (tracks: 4, 7, 10-12, 16)
Sampler - Sachiko M (tracks: 4, 10, 12)
Tenor & Soprano Saxophone - Kikuchi Naruyoshi* (tracks: 1, 9, 14-16)
Notes
All composed by Otomo Yoshihide, except 3, 8, 14 and 17 by Shimpei Nakayama and 5 by Victor Jara

Tracks 1-4, 7-12, 13-16: Original soundtrack of the movie Shabondama Elegy, directed by Ian Kerkhof
Tracks 5, 6, 13, 17: Additional recordings for the CD

Otomo Yoshihide (1, 2, 4, 7-12, 15, 16): guitar, turntables, electronics
Naruyoshi Kikuchi (1, 9, 14-16): tenor sax, soprano sax
Mitsuru Nasuno (1, 2, 9, 15, 16): electric bass
Tatsuki Masuko (1-3, 7, 8, 10, 11, 16): MPC-3000 effects, DX-7, organ; (2, 16): guitar
Sachiko M ( 4, 10, 12): sampler

Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet (5, 6, 13, 17)
Otomo Yoshihide: guitar
Naruyoshi Kikuchi: tenor sax
Kenta Tsugami: alto sax
Hiroaki Mizoguchi: double bass
Yasuhiro Yoshigaki: drums, pocket trumpet

Recorded and mixed by Naoaki Kose at Earth Studio, Tokyo, January 18 and 19, 1999 (1-3, 7-9, 11, 14-16); and July 20, 1999 (5, 6, 13, 17)
Recorded and remixed by Otomo Yoshihide at A-102 Studio, Tokyo, January 20 and 21, 1999 (4, 7, 10-12, 16)
Produced by Otomo Yoshihide
Includes liner notes in Japanese by Akihiro Suzuki

this information first published on discogs.com

September 21, 2009

kiyomi ito in shabondama elegy (excerpt)

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 10:57 pm


Шабондамская элегия / Shabondama Elegy (1999) now available on dvd in russia

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 10:00 am

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Информация о фильме:
Название: Шабондамская элегия
Оригинальное название: Shabondama Elegy
Год выхода: 1999
Жанр: драма, мелодрама, триллер, авангард, фильм-нуар, независимое кино
Режиссер: Aryan Kaganof
Сценарий: Aryan Kaganof
Original Music by: Yoshihide Otomo
В ролях: Hiroshi, Thom Hoffman, Mai Hoshino, Kiyomi Ito, Yuuji Kitano, Kozo Matsumoto, Terunori Miyazaki, Hisayasu Sato, Nozomi Shitara, Yoji Tanaka, Tomoyuki Yamazaki…

Голландский парень скрывается от полиции и якудзы. Японская девушка дает ему убежище, любовь, сигареты и шоколад. История их отношений друг с другом и внешним миром снята так, будто не существует не только наработанных за столетие кино повествовательных законов, но и сформированной за четверть века системы приемов больших и малых форм видео. Керкхоф укрупняет до распадения на составные элементы многочисленные эстетики и псевдоэстетики — film noir, любовной драмы, бессюжетного порно, кислотного видеоавангарда. При этом раздробленную мозаику режиссер сознательно не выстраивает в метаэстетику. Он не щадит своих зрителей, попутно создавая на экране мрачный и негуманный образ японской столицы — города, пропитанного насилием и безжалостного к наркоманам и изгоям. Красивый бэд-трип для тех, кто думает, что не боится…

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Чтобы понять, как это выглядит, можно вспомнить “Падших ангелов” Вонга Кар-Вая. Только у Керкхофа меньше мочиловки и гораздо, гораздо больше секса. Главное же различие — в отношении к кичу, привкус которого практически неизбежен в постмодернистском кинематографе. В “Шабондамской элегии” кич подвергнут эстетической деструктивности. Это определяет парадоксальный, почти невозможный эмоциональный результат, ощущение подлинного драматизма, которое кажется несопоставимым с объективным качеством увиденного. Что наводит на серьезные размышления о будущем кино как визуального искусства. Очевидно, Керкхоф дерзнул выйти на территорию, с существованием которой кинематографу придется примириться. Хотя бы в целях выживания.

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Порнографическая романтика, практически не имеющая права на существование по законам большого кинематографа. “Шабондамскую элегию” сравнивают с Годаром, но в фильмах Годара никогда японские проститутки не брали в рот на фоне нацистского флага, выряженные в гестаповскую форму. Королева японского порно Маи Хонисо и голландец Том Хоффман, позже сыгравший одного из гангстеров в “Догвилле” [2002] фон Триера здесь как бы повторяют судьбы героев Бельмондо и Дельфин Сейриг из “На последнем дыхании”, но это далеко не все. Зрители, в возмущении сбегавшие пачками с этого фильма семь лет назад на московском фестивале “Лики любви”, могут возразить, но истинный смысл этого цифрового порно-шедевра приходит со второго просмотра. Керкхоф расщепляет на пиксели не трагическую любовь японской проститутки и залетного гангстера, а кинематографические коды и экранированную реальность — в этом его схожесть с Годаром. Однако Керкхоф, заручившийся поддержкой продюсера “розовых фильмов” Судзуки Акихиро, куда более ушлый. Все-таки ближе Керкхофу американские безумцы вроде Ричарда Керна, чей фильм под названием “Fingered” [1986] внимательно изучает Кейко. В то же время “Шабондамская элегия” своей мягкотелостью в сравнении с мощной в своей аутентичности трансгрессии Америки или Востока ставит себя в назидание всем европейцам. Маргинальность Голландии не к лицу.

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Выпущено: Нидерланды / Netherlands, Япония / Japan
Производство: Kuki, Stance Company
Продолжительность: 01:29:56
Перевод: любительский одноголосый

Параметры рипа:
Качество: DVD5
Формат: DVD Video
Video Stream: MPEG Video NTSC, 720×480 (4:3), 29.970 fps, 6227 kbps avg
Audio Stream #1: AC3 Dolby Digital, 48 kHz, 2 ch, 192.00 kbps avg, Russian
Audio Stream #2: AC3 Dolby Digital, 48 kHz, 2 ch, 192.00 kbps avg, Japanese
Размер: 4654,48 Gb (4 654 487 552 bytes)

this review first appeared here

shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 12:37 am

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September 14, 2009

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 12:10 pm

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August 14, 2009

melvyn minnaar reviews shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 12:05 pm

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August 9, 2009

trevor steele-taylor on shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy), trevor steele-taylor — ABRAXAS @ 11:02 am

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August 6, 2009

ronald ockerhuysen reviews shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 11:49 am

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August 5, 2009

tokyo elegy: Interesting, Worthwhile, and I’d Say “Must See” for Film Students

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 11:02 pm

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8/10
Author: ekeby from wisconsin

I say “must see” for film students because this movie uses every trick in the book, yet it looks fresh and inventive.

I came upon this work solely from an interest in Thom Hoffman, whose performance in Black Book I admired. (One thing leading to another.) Hoffman is good in this as well, though the films couldn’t be more different.

The other review here (and at the time I write this, there’s only one) mentions having to see the movie multiple times to understand it. I would if I could. It’s just that there is so much graphic sex. I’m not a prude. I’m gay. Believe it or not, some gay men have a hard time looking at straight sex, just as straight men are uncomfortable watching man on man sex.

And then again, I did not consider the plot–at least as much of it as I understood–as interesting or important as the way it was presented.

Primarily this is a story of an obsessive love affair. “Lust affair” might also describe what’s going on. The lovers’ intimacy is shown without reservation, and it is in many of those scenes–one with f**king and one with cunnilingus, for example–where camera work and post production effects are especially inventive. Those kinds of scenes are digitally enhanced, sometimes in the style of Linklater’s Waking Life (which was made two years after this movie), sometimes reminiscent of Avedon’s psychedelic Beatles’ portraits.

Many times multiple images are overlaid. Sometimes scenes are shot from wildly different angles. Editing lingers or is rapid fire. Generally I’m wary when techniques like these are employed, but in this instance they are the essence of the film. This is a film that does not make compromises to facilitate comprehension. Information is provided poetically, albeit graphically. It is a graphic poem.

A couple other observations. The soundtrack consists primarily of gritty, minimalistic ’50s style jazz, not exactly atonal but certainly edgy. I usually hate that kind of music but this I liked. I thought it served the story. And I was amused to note that even the seamy-side of Tokyo looked spotless.

If I were straight, I probably would watch Elegy a couple more times. But not to see the sex. It would be to have the total experience.

(An aside: I found the digital censoring typical of Japanese films distracting. The realism of the sex is utterly convincing–for all I know it may be actual sex. To have genitals obscured seems petty in light of how raw everything else is about the film. If there isn’t an uncensored version, there should be.)

this review first appeared on imdb.com

marco weijers reviews shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 12:37 pm

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August 4, 2009

shabondama elegy - “like david lynch with a videocam dropping acid in tokyo”

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 8:36 am

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April 14, 2009

shabondama elegy wins a golden calf

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 8:24 pm

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April 13, 2009

thom hoffman on shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 10:34 am

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April 5, 2009

shaun de waal reviews tokyo elegy (shabondama elegy)

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy), shaun de waal — ABRAXAS @ 10:24 pm

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March 22, 2009

hans kroon reviews shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 4:46 am

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March 20, 2009

mark moorman reviews shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 9:00 am

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this review first published in het parool 8/9/99

March 16, 2009

shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 8:36 am

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March 13, 2009

thom hoffman on shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 2:16 pm

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March 10, 2009

a cry from the heart about love and death

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 6:52 am

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March 9, 2009

shabondama elegy

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 5:04 pm

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March 3, 2009

ian kerkhof’s most complex film

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 9:14 am

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January 21, 2009

a mosaic of love and treachery

Filed under: 1999 - shabondama elegy (tokyo elegy) — ABRAXAS @ 7:57 pm

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