Cinema
Gate of Hell
地獄門
Teinosuke Kinugasa · 1953
Synopsis
In 1159, during the Heiji rebellion, the warrior Moritō escorts a court lady, Kesa, who has agreed to take a place in a carriage to draw the rebels onto herself, according to Turner Classic Movies. Won over by her courage and beauty, he stays loyal to his lord when he is invited to join the revolt. With the uprising crushed, he asks for Kesa as the price of his services; he is told that she is married to Wataru, a warrior of the imperial guard, and he maintains his request.
Context
The film is based on Kikuchi Kan's play about Kesa's husband. It was Daiei's first film in Eastmancolor, and the first Japanese feature film in colour to be distributed abroad, according to Turner Classic Movies; the producer Nagata Masaichi co-wrote the screenplay. The costumes, by Wada Sanzō, were rewarded in Hollywood. The film runs for eighty-six minutes; the cinematography is by Sugiyama Kōhei and the art direction by Nishioka Yoshinobu.
Who it is for
A costume film in colour, of about an hour and a half, easy to follow for those who know nothing about medieval Japan.
Prizes and reception
Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival in 1954, then in Hollywood an Honorary Oscar and the Oscar for costumes.