My Heart Will Always Be True

At the rate of sounding like a total sap and continuing on in my unabashed admiration for the lady two posts below, I must say that having someone new that you adore in your life is like being submerged in a vast ocean. While there are moments of utter terror and insecurity in realizing you're completely vulnerable to the unknown elements, there is equally, if not moreso, a fresh new sense of wonder. The reason being is that below the surface, the unknown provides a technicolor spectrum of scenery you'd never been able to imagine. You see things you would've otherwise only had glimpses of in dreams, you feel things you've only experienced in the imagination of songs or films, and you gain interest in subjects that never before had much influence on you. This ladder point in specific is the topic of today's posting, as Sarah, the lover of Eastern culture and the woman with wild-eyed desires to be absorbed in Asian culture, has turned me on even moreso to early Asian cinema.

While I've had interest in several films from that canon, Sarah's brought to light the gems of 50's Japanese noir. Wasting no time, she introduced me to Kichitaro Negishi's Crazed Fruit which has quickly risen to the ranks of one of my favorites. It's an amazing film whose subject matter, cinematography, pacing and soundtrack are all flawless. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend you check it out. While I could easily be writing a post dedicated entirely to that film in particular, I've opted to instead showcase another film we recently watched that has also charted pretty high in my preferences - Seijun Suzuki's Underworld Beauty. While it seems to be somewhat recognized amongst film buff circles, it seems deserving of more attention in my humble opinion.


The film follows all the classic steps needed to make a successful film noir. There is a mysterious male protagonist with a somewhat seedy past (and prerequisite fedora), an unpredictable femme fatale always on the verge of mania, an understated romantic triangle, dense shadows, and keen attention to framing of shots. This ladder point is what was most apparent to me while watching the film, as I kept noting how amazing all the cinematography was in an era where film making was still in maturation.

Though I wouldn't necessarily say it was the most original storyline, by a longshot, and the ending was somewhat predictable a quarter of the way in, Underworld Beauty had more than enough to qualify it as a great film. Lead cinematographer, Wataro Nakao nailed this beautiful production to a T. For me, his handy work with the camera lens, lighting, and setting up breathtakingly dark and moody shots is what sealed this film into my heart. Below is a narrowed down compilation of screen-grabs I snapped showcasing some of my favorite shots from the film:

(I love the birdcage symbolism in the last shot - see also: Le Samouraï)

If you're a fan of classic-style film noir or some of Japan's lesser known features from the golden era, I'd say give Underworld Beauty a go. It's a fun watch from start to finish, and I'd be surprised if you didn't find the same charms in it as I did.

Oh, and as with Crazed Fruit, the score to this film was pretty terrific. If you find yourself enjoying the background soundscape while watching and are eager to hear more like-minded sounds, I'd recommend giving a listen to modern day groups like Monster Rally (yet another thing Sarah's turned me onto) and Dirty Beaches. They both seem to draw great inspiration from dusted film scores like these.