review: 03.31.01- "Graveyard of Honor and Humanity" at the Northwest Film Center
I caught a flick at the NW Film Center with my new friend Rich. A yakuza (Japanese gangster) film made by Kinji Fukasaku in 1975 called "Graveyard of Honor and Humanity." Which is hilarious, because the austere and noble title is extremely misleading.
This movie was very violent, and showed strong misogyny throughout. The main female character was raped, beaten up, forced into prostitution, yet managed to find, in her torrential storms of trauma, a place in her heart for her victimizer. She helps him to continue on his sociopathic and aimlessly destructive path.
It's really weird, though. I haven't a clue what goes into the making of a film, but this movie was extremely well made. The shots were wonderfully framed, and the segments shot in the middle of riots conveyed a true sense of urgency and personal chaos. The narration was campy, but effective. The director employed phases of black and white that alternated with a muted color that showed transitions.
Overall, I can appreciate the sophisticated techniques that were used in the movie. But the story was pretty nutty. You just have to be open-minded about the Japanese culture back then, I suppose. Which I am. I suppose I'm slightly more tolerant than most people about such things because I came from a small town, where you can either observe and imitate it's antiquated behavior, or learn to know better but realize that it will take time to fully change it.