Movielogr
The Insect Woman (1963)
Directed by Shōhei Imamura
Twitter Facebook Google+Overview
A woman, Tome, is born to a lower class family in Japan in 1918. The title refers to an insect, repeating its mistakes, as in an infinite circle. Imamura, with this metaphor, introduces the life of Tome, who keeps trying to change her poor life.
Rated NR | Length 123 minutes
Actors
Sachiko Hidari | Jitsuko Yoshimura | Emiko Aizawa | Masumi Harukawa | Emiko Higashi | Daizaburo Hirata | Seizaburô Kawazu | Teruko Kishi | Tanie Kitabayashi | Kazuo Kitamura | Masakazu Kuwayama | Hiroyuki Nagato | Shoichi Ozawa | Sumie Sasaki | Taiji Tonoyama | Asao Koike | Kayoko Honoo | Shigeru Tsuyuguchi
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06/25/2014 | TV | DVD | Library | 7.5 stars |
| (Average) 7.5 stars |
Viewing Notes
Another emotionally draining movie. Brutal, depressing, desperate. The insect is such an appropriate metaphor for the life of Tome as she weaves through life struggling to just live in the worst of times. Kind of incredible that Imamura was inspired by a real prostitute and the story of her life. I’m very curious how much was embellished for his screenplay.
Very good film yet not one I would want to revisit anytime soon. But I can see why this is considered a top Japanese film like the flipside of an Ozu movie, very dark and very well crafted (shot entirely on location which is crazy).
Worth noting that Imamura was also admonished by Nikkatsu and this film put him back in good graces. Such a difficult studio especially during this time. I’d love to learn more that time period and how the other studio systems operated.
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