#378: ICHIKAWA, Kon: Fires On The Plain (1959)

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ICHIKAWA, Kon (Japan)
Fires On The Plain [1959]
Spine #378
DVD


An agonizing portrait of desperate Japanese soldiers stranded in a strange land during World War II, Kon Ichikawa's Fires on the Plain is a compelling descent into psychological and physical oblivion. Denied hospital treatment for tuberculosis and cast off into the unknown, Private Tamura treks across an unfamiliar Philippine landscape, encountering an increasingly debased cross section of Imperial Army soldiers, who eventually give in to the most terrifying craving of all. Grisly yet poetic, Fires on the Plain is one of the most powerful works from one of Japanese cinema's most versatile filmmakers.

104 minutes
Black & White
Monaural
in Japanese
2:35:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2007
Director/Writers


Original story by Shohei Ooka.
Screenplay by Natto Wada.
Kon Ichikawa was 44 when he directed Fires on the Plain.

Other Ichikawa films in the Collection:

#379: The Burmese Harp (1956)
#912: An Actor's Revenge (1963)
#155/#900: Tokyo Olympiad (1965)
#567: The Makioka Sisters (1983)

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

Twenty-four page booklet featuring an essay by Chuck Stephens.

Commentary

None.

Video introduction

By Japanese-film scholar Donald Richie.
Vide piece

Featuring director Ichikawa and actor Curtis.
Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

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