The Criterion Collection presents
Harakiri (Seppuku) (1962)
"Who can fathom the depths of another man's heart?"
- Hanshiro Tsugumo (Tasuya Nakadai)
Review By: Nate Meyers
Published: August 22, 2005
Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Rentaro Mikuni, Akira Ishihama
Other Stars: Shima Iwashita, Tetsuro Tamba, Masao Mishima, Ichiro
Nakaya, Kei Sato, Yoshio Inaba, Yoshiro Aoki
Director: Masaki Kobayashi
Manufacturer: DVDL
MPAA Rating: Not Rated for (violence)
Run Time: 02h:12m:47s
Release Date: August 23, 2005
UPC: 037429207321
Genre: foreign
DVD Review
Harakiri (Seppuku), director Masaki Kobayashi's powerful indictment
of social structures, in this case the Tokugawa shogunate, which
demolish the individual's dignity in favor of authoritarian rule, is
a superb film. Set in 1630 near the beginning of the famous
shogunate's rule, Harakiri (Seppuku) exposes Tom Cruise's vain
attempt at multiculturalism, The Last Samurai, for what it isa
mindless narrative based on inane American notions of the samurai.
Kobayashi's film is a subtle, astute tale full of outrage and
profundity.
As the film opens, momentous change is sweeping across Japan,
causing many samurai to fall into exile as ronin, masterless
samurai. Despite the changes, the Iyi Clan is prosperous and adheres
strictly to their oaths. Thus, when a man claiming to be a retainer
of the fallen Fukushima Clan arrives, they question his motives.
Hanshiro Tsugumo (Tatsuya Nakadai) asks permission to commit
harakiri, ritual suicide, in the Iyi Clan's forecourt. The
counselor, Kageyu Saito (Rentaro Mikuni), is skeptical because many
ronin have been attempting to extort money from various clans by
playing to their sympathies under the guise of this sacred ritual.
Saito meets with Tsugumo in private, speaking frankly in the ascetic
environment, telling the story of a young man, Motome Chijiiwa
(Akira Ishihama), who made the same proposition. Through a series of
vivid flashbacks, Chijiiwa's fate at the austere hands of the Iyi
Clan is revealed. Exposed as a scoundrel, they force him to commit
harakiri with his bamboo sword.
The story does not phase Tsugumo, however, who confidently informs
Saito that he has every intention of slicing his own abdomen. The
ceremony is prepared, but Tsugumo makes a request for the great Iyi
swordsmen Hikokuro Omodaka (Tetsuro Tamba) to assist in the ritual.
Omodaka is absent due to illness, so Tsugumo makes two additional
requests for samurai who are also absent. Each of the three
requested men was intricately involved in Chijiiwa's excruciating
death, prompting Saito to suspect Tsugumo of a conspiracy. As they
wait for news on the three missing samurai, Tsugumo tells the story
of his life and reveals his relationship to Chijiiwa. There is no
telling how things will play out, but Saito and Tsugumo find
themselves locked in a battle of wills that could very soon turn
into a deadly duel.
Kobayashi's direction is patient in its storytelling. Working from a
script by Shinobu Hashimoto (most famous for Rashomon), Kobayashi
shifts focus between the Iyi courtyard and Tsugumo's story with
great skill, allowing the flashbacks to slowly reveal all the events
that led up to Tsugumo's arrival. Watching the events unfold, I
found myself mesmerized by how little actually happens. In many
ways, Harakiri is the antithesis to Kurosawa's brilliant samurai
pictures. Apart from the violent and unbridled demise of Chijiiwa
(shown in unblinking horror, with canted camera angles heightening
the effect) the movie is mostly calm and little more than two men
conversing in front of a large audience. Yet, there's a kind of
spectacle in all of this. The richly adventurous black-and-white
cinematography by Yoshio Miyajima merges both serenity and chaos,
capturing the alluring production design with tremendous realism.
Furthering that sense is the musical score, bringing emotion and
drama into perfect harmony. The filmmaking is so good that I
genuinely felt like I was sitting in feudal Japan while watching it.
There are flaws, however, in the storytelling. At 133 minutes,
Kobayashi could employ some judicious editing to strengthen the
film's effect. There are moments when the courtyard scenes lag,
taking the audience out of Tsugumo's drama. However, the extended
length is made durable by Tatsuya Nakadai's incredible performance
as Tsugumo. Only 30 years old when making the film, Nakadai embodies
his character with zeal and intelligence. The ragged beard and
tethered clothes further his performance, which contains a range
unusual in Japanese films of the period. The dialogue is poetic,
employing a kabuki aesthetic and mixing it with method acting. Pay
special attention to the early scenes when Nakadai is listening to
his fellow actor, Rentaro Mikuni. The two create a tension that
seeps off of the screen and into the viewer.
Harakiri is a classic piece of cinema. The themes of the film, which
are antiauthoritarian, are timeless and raise many questions. What
is honor? Who decides whether an act is honorable? What is the price
of humanity? Kobayashi weaves these questions into a stunning story
that can only be appreciated by viewing it.
Rating for Style: A-
Rating for Substance: A
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