Monday, December 1 at 7:00 PM – Music Box Theatre – 3733 N Southport Ave
Tickets: $11 at the door or purchase in advance
KWAIDAN
Directed by Masaki Kobayashi • 1964
In Japanese with English subtitles
Spirits in the drinking water, stolen ears, crabs with human faces: such are the endless wonders of Kwaidan. Masaki Kobayashi (Harakiri, The Human Condition) helmed this supernatural anthology film based on Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things, a 1904 collection of Japanese folktales from Lafcadio Hearn, a Greek-Irish writer and renowned proponent of Japanese culture in the West. At the time of its release Kwaidan was the most expensive Japanese film ever made, and it seems to have been worth every penny. Extraordinary sets built inside an empty airplane hangar were intertwined with transcendently beautiful hand-painted backdrops, shimmering optical effects, and an expressionistic score composed by the great Tōru Takemitsu – in keeping with the cultural ping-pong between Japan and author Hearn, Takemitsu was inspired by American avant-garde composer John Cage. In the centerpiece story, “Hoichi the Earless”, a man questions his friend about whether or not spirits of the sea are real: “For those who believe, they are. For those who don’t, they aren’t.” CFS will be screening the 161-minute international export cut of the film, the only version available in the US on 35mm. For those who believe, this visually overwhelming and aurally hypnotizing film must be seen on film, in the cool dark of the theater, the place where spirits dwell. For those who don’t, the three-hour version is available to stream at home. (RL)
161 min • Toho • 35mm from Janus Films
Preceded by: “L’Eye” (Xander Marro, 2005) – 3 min – 16mm from the filmmaker
NEXT UP: Uncle Nick and the Chicago All-Stars:
Newly Preserved Films from the Filipino American Historical Society of Chicago on Wednesday, December 10 at Constellation