#988: CARRA, Lucille: The Inland Sea (1991)
CARRA, Lucille (United States)
The Inland Sea [1991]
Spine #988
Blu-ray
The Booklet
Ten-page wraparound featuring an essay by author Arturo Silva.
Commentary
None
The Inland Sea [1991]
Spine #988
Blu-ray
In 1971, author and film scholar Donald Richie published a poetic travelogue about his explorations of the islands of Japan's Inland Sea, recording his search for traces of a traditional way of life as well as his journey of self-discovery. Twenty years later, filmmaker Lucille Carra undertook a parallel trip inspired by Richie's by-then-classic book, capturing images of hushed beauty and meeting people who still carried on the fading customs that Richie had observed. Interspersed with surprising detours — visits to a Frank Sinatra-loving monk, a leper colony, an ersatz temple of plywood and plaster — and woven together by Richie's narration as well as a score by celebrated composer Toru Takemitsu. The Inland Sea is an eye-opening voyage and a profound meditation on what it means to be a foreigner.
56 minutes
Color/Black & White
Stereo
in English and Japanese
1:66:1 aspect ratio
Stereo
in English and Japanese
1:66:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2019
Director/Writer
Donald Richie (1924-2013) was 47 when he wrote The Inland Sea in 1971.
The Film
The Inland Sea (Seto Naikai, “sea within straits”) touches three of Japan’s four main islands: Honshū, Shikoku and Kyūshū.
Richie’s book — so much more than a travelogue — is poetically personal and romantically descriptive. Like Richie himself, an ex-pat living in Japan since 1947 — a prolific author of the highest caliber, a cinephile (and filmmaker) whose books on Japanese cinema are all essential, and a composer of avant-garde music — The Inland Sea makes for sensational reading.
Carra studied film at NYU with Scorsese and others. She later worked for Toho International in New York, where she became fascinated with all things Japanese. Along with Brian Cotnoir (editor) and Hiro Narita (DP on films as diverse as Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Star Trek VI), they convinced Richie that they could make his book into a film.
Not quite yet.
Thus, Richie (who narrates the film) describes the simple beauty of the islands and the imminent peril of their destruction by civilization. Not quite yet ...
Yet in 1991 — 20 years after the book’s publication — the filmmakers find that the phrase still applies. Yes, there are many modern bridges and buildings which mar the ancient landscapes — but the people often seem untouched by the ravages of modern life.
Another Criterion film, Kaneto Shindo’s 1960 The Naked Island (Spine #811) would make a nice companion piece.
Film Rating (0-60):
54
The ExtrasThe Booklet
Ten-page wraparound featuring an essay by author Arturo Silva.
A brilliant writer writes about another brilliant writer and covers it all. The essay is divided into three parts: The Film, The Film and the Book, and The Book and the Man.
Commentary
None
Video interview 1
with Carra, who discusses her work in detail.
Video interview 2
featuring a conversation between filmmaker Paul Schrader and cultural critic Ian Buruma on Richie. Their love for their subject shines through.
Video interview 3
with Richie from 1991. He lovingly describes the relationship between the book and the film as mirror-like.
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