Eizō Sugawa
Encyclopedia
was a Japanese filmmaker.
to a family that owned an asbestos manufacturing business. He graduated from the economics department of Tokyo University in 1953, and subsequently joined Toho
studios. He was inspired to enter the film industry after watching foreign films, which were imported into Japan in huge amounts following World War II.
While working as an assistant director, he wrote a script titled Kiken na Eiyūtachi that was published in screenplay magazine Independent. Toho producer Masakatsu Kaneko was impressed with the script, which depicted an ambitious reporter involved in a kidnapping incident with a touch reminiscent of American films, and used it as the basis for Kiken na Eiyū (1957), directed by Hideo Suzuki and starring Shintarō Ishihara
.
In September 1958, Sugawa and Kihachi Okamoto
were promoted to the rank of director by Toho to quell the ire of the company's assistant directors, who objected to the choice of an outsider, Shintarō Ishihara
, to direct the film Wakai Kedamono (若い獣).
The promotion put Sugawa ahead of many of his colleagues, who had paid their dues for many years as assistant directors to work their way up to the position of chief assistant director. At the time, he had only worked as a chief assistant director on a single film, Mikio Naruse
's 1958 The Summer Clouds (鰯雲, Iwashi-gumo). His promotion to director at the age of 27 after only five years at the company was extraordinarily fast. He eventually made his directorial debut with Seishun Hakusho: Otona ni wa Wakaranai.
Sugawa re-teamed with producer Kaneko on his second film Yajū Shisu Beshi (1959), which was lauded as a Japanese answer to the French New Wave
and starred Tatsuya Nakadai
, who was in between shooting the second and third installments of Masaki Kobayashi's The Human Condition
. However, its original ending, in which the nihilistic protagonist escapes punishment for his crimes, sparked controversy when industry censorship organ Eirin
and powerful Toho producer Sanezumi Fujimoto demanded that it be changed.
While making a name for himself with his refined hard-boiled touch, a rarity in Japanese film at the time, he also harbored an ambition to create a unique brand of Japanese musical film, to the extent that he traveled to the United States in 1964 to study American musicals. Before the year was out, he presented the culmination of his research, the musical Kimi mo Shusse ga Dekiru. Furthermore, his Seichō Matsumoto adaptation Kemonomichi was a coolly-depicted crime drama on an impressive scale that encompassed the machinations of the political world, and his entries in the Hitoshi Ueki
-starring Nippon-Ichi no Otoko series were a darkly comedic look at post-war Japanese history (Nippon-Ichi no Uragiri Otoko) and a non-orthodox commentary on contemporary social conditions (Nippon-Ichi no Danzetsu Otoko).
Sugawa reinvigorated the Toho New Action genre in the mid-70's with two frenetic Hiroshi Fujioka
vehicles: Yajū-gari, in which feuding father-and-son cops take on a radical group who kidnap a company president; and Yajū Shisu Beshi: Fukushū no Mekanikku, a more violent and revenge-driven sequel to his own Yajū Shisu Beshi, which helped lay the foundations of Toho New Action.
In 1976, Sugawa left Toho and set up his own independent production company called "Sugawa Eizō Productions." The following year, he teamed up with Art Theatre Guild
to produce and release an adaptation of Hisashi Inoue's play Nihonjin no Heso, but subsequently concentrated on writing and directing television series. His accolades as a television writer include an Agency of Cultural Affairs Arts Festival Award for NHK
drama series Igata, and a Galaxy Award for another NHK series, Chichi to Musume no Kisetsu.
In 1987 he directed his first film in 10 years, River of Fireflies starring Rentaro Mikuni. His final film was Tobu Yume o Shibaraku Minai, an adaptation of a novel by Taichi Yamada
.
, who butted heads with Sugawa during the production of a film of his novel Bokutachi no Shippai, was quoted as saying furiously: "I've never had to endure such humiliation."
Career
Sugawa was born in OsakaOsaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
to a family that owned an asbestos manufacturing business. He graduated from the economics department of Tokyo University in 1953, and subsequently joined Toho
Toho
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
studios. He was inspired to enter the film industry after watching foreign films, which were imported into Japan in huge amounts following World War II.
While working as an assistant director, he wrote a script titled Kiken na Eiyūtachi that was published in screenplay magazine Independent. Toho producer Masakatsu Kaneko was impressed with the script, which depicted an ambitious reporter involved in a kidnapping incident with a touch reminiscent of American films, and used it as the basis for Kiken na Eiyū (1957), directed by Hideo Suzuki and starring Shintarō Ishihara
Shintaro Ishihara
is a Japanese author, actor, politician and the governor of Tokyo since 1999.- Early life and artistic career :Shintarō was born in Suma-ku, Kobe. His father Kiyoshi was an employee, later a general manager, of a shipping company. Shintarō grew up in Zushi...
.
In September 1958, Sugawa and Kihachi Okamoto
Kihachi Okamoto
was a Japanese film director who has worked in several different genres, including jidaigeki.-Career:Born in Yonago, Okamoto attended Meiji University, but was drafted in 1943 and entered World War II during its most difficult hours, an experience that had a profound effect on his later film work,...
were promoted to the rank of director by Toho to quell the ire of the company's assistant directors, who objected to the choice of an outsider, Shintarō Ishihara
Shintaro Ishihara
is a Japanese author, actor, politician and the governor of Tokyo since 1999.- Early life and artistic career :Shintarō was born in Suma-ku, Kobe. His father Kiyoshi was an employee, later a general manager, of a shipping company. Shintarō grew up in Zushi...
, to direct the film Wakai Kedamono (若い獣).
The promotion put Sugawa ahead of many of his colleagues, who had paid their dues for many years as assistant directors to work their way up to the position of chief assistant director. At the time, he had only worked as a chief assistant director on a single film, Mikio Naruse
Mikio Naruse
was a Japanese filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer who directed some 89 films spanning the period 1930 to 1967.Naruse is known for imbuing his films with a bleak and pessimistic outlook...
's 1958 The Summer Clouds (鰯雲, Iwashi-gumo). His promotion to director at the age of 27 after only five years at the company was extraordinarily fast. He eventually made his directorial debut with Seishun Hakusho: Otona ni wa Wakaranai.
Sugawa re-teamed with producer Kaneko on his second film Yajū Shisu Beshi (1959), which was lauded as a Japanese answer to the French New Wave
French New Wave
The New Wave was a blanket term coined by critics for a group of French filmmakers of the late 1950s and 1960s, influenced by Italian Neorealism and classical Hollywood cinema. Although never a formally organized movement, the New Wave filmmakers were linked by their self-conscious rejection of...
and starred Tatsuya Nakadai
Tatsuya Nakadai
is a Japanese leading film actor.He became a star after he was discovered working as a Tokyo shop clerk by filmmaker Masaki Kobayashi during the early 1950s...
, who was in between shooting the second and third installments of Masaki Kobayashi's The Human Condition
The Human Condition (film trilogy)
is a Japanese epic film trilogy made between 1959 and 1961. It is based on a novel by Gomikawa Junpei 五味川純平 .-Background:It was directed by Masaki Kobayashi and stars Tatsuya Nakadai. The trilogy follows the life of Kaji, a Japanese pacifist and socialist, as he tries to survive in the fascist...
. However, its original ending, in which the nihilistic protagonist escapes punishment for his crimes, sparked controversy when industry censorship organ Eirin
Eirin
is the abbreviated name for , Japan's movie regulator. Eirin was established on the model of the American Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America's Production Code Administration in June, 1949, on the instructions of the US occupation force...
and powerful Toho producer Sanezumi Fujimoto demanded that it be changed.
While making a name for himself with his refined hard-boiled touch, a rarity in Japanese film at the time, he also harbored an ambition to create a unique brand of Japanese musical film, to the extent that he traveled to the United States in 1964 to study American musicals. Before the year was out, he presented the culmination of his research, the musical Kimi mo Shusse ga Dekiru. Furthermore, his Seichō Matsumoto adaptation Kemonomichi was a coolly-depicted crime drama on an impressive scale that encompassed the machinations of the political world, and his entries in the Hitoshi Ueki
Hitoshi Ueki
was a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and guitarist. He won six awards for acting. His film credits stretch from 1960 to 1995.Ueki came to fame through the comic jazz-band The Crazy Cats led by Hajime Hana...
-starring Nippon-Ichi no Otoko series were a darkly comedic look at post-war Japanese history (Nippon-Ichi no Uragiri Otoko) and a non-orthodox commentary on contemporary social conditions (Nippon-Ichi no Danzetsu Otoko).
Sugawa reinvigorated the Toho New Action genre in the mid-70's with two frenetic Hiroshi Fujioka
Hiroshi Fujioka
, better known by his stage name , is a Japanese actor known for playing the hero Takeshi Hongo in the tokusatsu superhero series Kamen Rider, and later the Sega Saturn mascot Segata Sanshiro. Fujioka is a cultural icon in Japan, even having the minor planet 12408 Fujioka, discovered by Akimasa...
vehicles: Yajū-gari, in which feuding father-and-son cops take on a radical group who kidnap a company president; and Yajū Shisu Beshi: Fukushū no Mekanikku, a more violent and revenge-driven sequel to his own Yajū Shisu Beshi, which helped lay the foundations of Toho New Action.
In 1976, Sugawa left Toho and set up his own independent production company called "Sugawa Eizō Productions." The following year, he teamed up with Art Theatre Guild
Art Theatre Guild
Art Theatre Guild was a film production company in Japan that started in 1961 and ran through to the mid 1980s. ATG, as it is abbreviated, released mostly Japanese New Wave films. Films released by ATG include Nagisa Oshima's Diary Of A Shinjuku Thief , Toshio Matsumoto's masterpiece Funeral...
to produce and release an adaptation of Hisashi Inoue's play Nihonjin no Heso, but subsequently concentrated on writing and directing television series. His accolades as a television writer include an Agency of Cultural Affairs Arts Festival Award for NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
drama series Igata, and a Galaxy Award for another NHK series, Chichi to Musume no Kisetsu.
In 1987 he directed his first film in 10 years, River of Fireflies starring Rentaro Mikuni. His final film was Tobu Yume o Shibaraku Minai, an adaptation of a novel by Taichi Yamada
Taichi Yamada
is a Japanese screenwriter and novelist. His real name is .-Career:Born in Asakusa, Tokyo, Yamada attended Waseda University before entering the Shōchiku film studios, where he trained as an assistant director under Keisuke Kinoshita...
.
Personality
Sugawa remained strictly non-religious throughout his life. and when he married actress Akemi Mari in 1969, they entered into a "contract of love" instead of holding a ceremony. He was also extremely particular when it came to filmmaking and seldom made compromises, which often led to clashes with authors when shooting films based on literary works. Writer Tatsuzō IshikawaTatsuzo Ishikawa
was a Japanese author. He was the winner of the first Akutagawa Prize.-Biography:Born in Yokote, Akita Prefecture, Japan, Ishikawa was raised in several places, including Kyoto and Okayama Prefecture. He entered Waseda University's literature department but left before graduating. In 1930 he left...
, who butted heads with Sugawa during the production of a film of his novel Bokutachi no Shippai, was quoted as saying furiously: "I've never had to endure such humiliation."
Writer
- 1957 Kiken na Eiyū (危険な英雄, directed by Hideo Suzuki)
- 1990 Ruten no Umi (流転の海, directed by Buichi Saitō)
Director
- 1958 Seishun Hakusho: Otona ni wa Wakaranai (青春白書 大人には分らない)
- 1959 Yajū Shisu Beshi (野獣死すべし)
- 1960 Yama no Kanata ni (山のかなたに)
- 1960 Minagoroshi no Uta yori: Kenjū yo Saraba (みな殺しの歌より 拳銃よさらば)
- 1961 Ai to Honō to (愛と炎と)
- 1962 Aru Ōsaka no Onna (ある大阪の女, remake of Kenji MizoguchiKenji MizoguchiKenji Mizoguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. His film Ugetsu won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and appeared in the Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll in 1962 and 1972. Mizoguchi is renowned for his mastery of the long take and mise-en-scène...
's Osaka ElegyOsaka Elegyis a 1936 Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. Mizoguchi considered the film his first serious effort as a director, and it was also his first commercial and critical success in Japan...
) - 1962 Bokutachi no Shippai (僕たちの失敗)
- 1963 Taiyō wa Yonde iru (太陽は呼んでいる)
- 1964 Kimi mo Shusse ga Dekiru (君も出世ができる)
- 1965 Kemonomichi (けものみち)
- 1967 Taifū to Zakuro (颱風とざくろ)
- 1968 Sararīman Akutōjutsu (サラリーマン悪党術)
- 1968 Nippon-Ichi no Uragiri Otoko (日本一の裏切り男)
- 1969 Burakku Komedi: Aa! Baka (ブラック・コメディ ああ!馬鹿)
- 1969 Nippon-Ichi no Danzetsu Otoko (日本一の断絶男)
- 1972 Hyakuman-nin no Daigasshō (百万人の大合唱)
- 1973 Yajū-gari (野獣狩り)
- 1974 Yajū Shisu Beshi: Fukushū no Mekanikku (野獣死すべし 復讐のメカニック)
- 1977 Nihonjin no Heso (日本人のへそ)
- 1987 River of Fireflies (蛍川, Hotarugawa)
- 1987 Tobu Yume o Shibaraku Minai (飛ぶ夢をしばらく見ない)