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Tales Of The Taira Clan [1955] | ![Tales Of The Taira Clan [1955]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CEXR227BL._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
Actors: Shunji Natsume, Mitsusaburô Ramon, Tamao Nakamura, Narutoshi Hayashi, Raizô Ichikawa
Studio: Bfi Video
Category: Video
Buy New: £16.25
New (3) Used (1) Collectible (1) from £16.25
Sales Rank: 14493
Format: Pal, Subtitled
Languages: Japanese (Original Language), English (Original Language)
Rating: Universal, suitable for all
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 103
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 4.7 x 1.2
EAN: 5024165823484
ASIN: B00004CYY7
Theatrical Release Date: 1955
Release Date: July 5, 1999
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Immediate Dispatch from the UK (061599) / Factory Sealed
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
Kenji Mizoguchi, greatest of Japanese directors, only made two films in colour, and this is the second of them. It's also the last of his many period dramas, a genre of which he was undisputed master. The story is set in the 12th century, at a crucial point in Japanese history: the moment when the samurais ceased to be mere hired fighters, despised by the courtly aristocrats, and took over as the dominant class in Japanese society--a status they would enjoy for the next 700 years. The politics of the film are complex--essentially it tells how one samurai clan, the Taira, broke the arrogant power of the Buddhist temples, with their armies of warrior monks, and began to undermine the supremacy of the Emperor. But it's not necessary to follow all the intricacies of the historical background to appreciate the dramatic sweep of clashing forces and the subtle psychological interplay of emotions as the young hero, Kiyomori, head of the Taira clan, finds his loyalties pulled this way and that, culminating in a crisis of identity as his parentage is called into question. Above all, Tales of the Taira Clan is supremely beautiful to look at, even by Mizoguchi's standards. The sumptuous sets and costumes, often shot at night or in deep-shaded half-light, take on a jewel-like sheen, and his sweeping, serene camera captures all the turbulence of a troubled era. --Philip Kemp
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