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REVIEW: The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kurahara

I’m torn, really and truly, I am. Though I fell in love all over again with the Criterion Collection after they announced their plans to release several films by unsung Japanese New Wave director Koreyoshi Kurahara , I’m currently unconvinced that we need all of the titles from that group not named The Warped Ones . It’s a rather silly hesitation, I know, one that I wouldn’t even be able to ponder had it not been for the Criterion Collection’s generosity. After all, Kurahara is a name that deserves greater prominence, and The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kuarahara , a new Eclipse DVD box set showcasing five of the director’s films from the early ’60s, is a very good primer. But only two of the films in this set are must-see viewing.

If anything, this new box set only confirms my opinion that the best DVD package released under the Eclipse label thus far has been their Nikkatsu Noir set, the only one of the Eclipse series not dedicated strictly to a single director. Nikkatsu Noir gave viewers a more comprehensive look at who was making what film at a certain period of time during Japan’s New Wave. To be fair, The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kurahara also provides some great context for Kurahara neophytes (i.e., most everyone, including myself — I had only seen The Warped Ones before digging into this new box set). But after Kurahara’s two 1960 productions, the other featured titles are a little disappointing.

Kurahara’s movies are at their primal best when they’re most direct. In both Intimidation and The Warped Ones , his characters wear their disaffection with humanity on their sleeves. These two films are the best showcases of his talents because they are centered on characters with fundamentally basic motivations. For example, in Intimidation , sweat-drenched bank manager Takita (Nobuo Kaneko) is just trying to keep his head above water after Kumaki (Kôjirô Kusanagi), a young, sunglasses-clad pimp, blackmails him into robbing his own bank. The film’s plot is blisteringly simple, allowing for a few necessarily overheated plot twists along the way as Takita has to rob the bank and get rid of Kumaki.

REVIEW: The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kurahara > Press Play

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I’m torn, really and truly, I am. Though I fell in love all over again with the Criterion Collection after they announced their plans to release several films by unsung Japanese New Wave director Koreyoshi Kurahara , I’m currently unconvinced that we need all of the titles from that group not named The Warped Ones . It’s a rather silly hesitation, I know, one that I wouldn’t even be able to ponder had it not been for the Criterion Collection’s generosity. After all, Kurahara is a name that deserves greater prominence, and The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kuarahara , a new Eclipse DVD box set showcasing five of the director’s films from the early ’60s, is a very good primer. But only two of the films in this set are must-see viewing.

If anything, this new box set only confirms my opinion that the best DVD package released under the Eclipse label thus far has been their Nikkatsu Noir set, the only one of the Eclipse series not dedicated strictly to a single director. Nikkatsu Noir gave viewers a more comprehensive look at who was making what film at a certain period of time during Japan’s New Wave. To be fair, The Warped Worlds of Koreyoshi Kurahara also provides some great context for Kurahara neophytes (i.e., most everyone, including myself — I had only seen The Warped Ones before digging into this new box set). But after Kurahara’s two 1960 productions, the other featured titles are a little disappointing.

Kurahara’s movies are at their primal best when they’re most direct. In both Intimidation and The Warped Ones , his characters wear their disaffection with humanity on their sleeves. These two films are the best showcases of his talents because they are centered on characters with fundamentally basic motivations. For example, in Intimidation , sweat-drenched bank manager Takita (Nobuo Kaneko) is just trying to keep his head above water after Kumaki (Kôjirô Kusanagi), a young, sunglasses-clad pimp, blackmails him into robbing his own bank. The film’s plot is blisteringly simple, allowing for a few necessarily overheated plot twists along the way as Takita has to rob the bank and get rid of Kumaki.

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