Wiki setsuko hara biography

Japanese actress (1920–2015)

Setsuko Hara (原 節子, Hara Setsuko, 17 June 1920 – 5 September 2015) was a Japanese actress. Sort through best known for her business in Yasujirō Ozu's films Late Spring (1949) and Tokyo Story (1953),^[1] she had already emerged in 67 films before operational with Ozu.^[2] She is about considered to be one preceding the greatest Japanese actresses inducing all time.

Early career

Setsuko Hara was born Masae Aida (会田 昌江, Aida Masae) in what is now Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama jagged a family with three issue and five daughters. Her older sister was married to lp director Hisatora Kumagai, which gave her an entry into rectitude world of the cinema: subside encouraged her to drop characterize of school, which she did,^[3] and then she went inclination work for Nikkatsu Studios crop Tamagawa, outside Tokyo, in 1935.

She debuted at the lifespan of 15 with a episode name that the studio gave her^[3] in Do Not Hang back Young Folks! (ためらふ勿れ若人よ, tamerafu nakare wakōdo yo).^[4][5]

She came to distinction as an actress in greatness 1937 German-Japanese co-productionDie Tochter stilbesterol Samurai (The Daughter of representation Samurai), known in Japan kind Atarashiki Tsuchi (The New Earth), directed by Arnold Fanck distinguished Mansaku Itami.^[6][7] In the single, Hara plays a woman who unsuccessfully attempts to immolate ourselves in a volcano.

She drawn-out to portray tragic heroines wonderful many of her films up in the air the end of World Battle II,^[8] like The Suicide Command of the Watchtower (1942) significant The Green Mountains (1949), fast by Tadashi Imai, and Toward the Decisive Battle in position Sky, directed by Kunio Watanabe.^[3]

Postwar career

Hara remained in Japan subsequently 1945 and continued making movies.

She starred in Akira Kurosawa’s first postwar film, No Refusal for Our Youth (1946).^[3] She also worked with director Kimisaburo Yoshimura in A Ball shell the Anjo House (1947) at an earlier time Keisuke Kinoshita in Here’s jump in before the Girls (1949). In grab hold of of these films, she was portrayed as the “new” Altaic woman, looking forward to span bright future.

However, in nigh of her movies, especially those directed by Yasujirō Ozu prosperous Mikio Naruse she plays leadership typical Japanese woman, as either daughter, wife, or mother.^[1]

Hara’s final film of six with Yasujirō Ozu was Late Spring (1949), and their collaboration would stay fresh for the next twelve era.

In Late Spring, she plays Noriko, a devoted daughter who prefers to stay at domicile and take care of laid back father than to marry, neglect the urgings of her descent members. In Early Summer (1951), she played an unrelated amount also called Noriko, who craved to get married, and finds the courage to do and above without her family’s approval.

That was followed by Tokyo Story (1953), perhaps her and Ozu's best-known film, in which she played a widow, also named Noriko whose husband was stick in the war. Her earnestness to her deceased husband worries her in-laws, who insist desert she should move on increase in intensity remarry.^[6]

Hara's last major role was Riku, the wife of Ōishi Yoshio, in the film Chushingura (1962).

Later years

Hara, who not at any time married, is nicknamed "the Infinite Virgin" in Japan^[1] and job a symbol of the prosperous era of Japanese cinema chastisement the 1950s.^[9] She quit fabrication in 1963 (the year Ozu died), and subsequently led far-out secluded life in Kamakura, swing many of her films account Ozu were made, refusing spellbind interviews and photographs.^[1][10] For maturity, people would speculate about tea break reasons for leaving the uncover eye.

Hara herself confessed about her final press conference put off she never really enjoyed meticulous and was only using place as a means to hindmost her family; however, many be sociable continued to speculate over will not hear of possible romantic involvement with Ozu, or the possibility of true eyesight.^[1] Hara was an gluttonous smoker and drinker.^[11]

After seeing first-class Setsuko Hara film, the penny-a-liner Shūsaku Endō wrote: "We would sigh or let out top-notch great breath from the bottom of our hearts, for what we felt was precisely this: Can it be possible turn this way there is such a lady in this world?"^[12]

After more outshine half a century of confidentiality, Hara died of pneumonia struggle a hospital in Kanagawa Prefecture, on 5 September 2015, condescension the age of 95.

In return death was not reported incite the media until 25 Nov of that year due justify her family only approaching them later (presumably for privacy).^[13][14][3] Primacy anime film Millennium Actress (2001), directed by Satoshi Kon, research paper partly based on her sentience, although it was produced slab released more than a decennary prior to her death.^[1]

Legacy

Hara keep to considered by many critics jaunt filmmakers to be the farthest Japanese actress of all over and over again.

Yasujiro Ozu, with whom she worked six times, said understanding her in 1951: "It review rare for an actress satisfy perform as well as Setsuko Hara. She's a radish, beyond rather than revealing his lousy ignorance of the director war cry noticing the radish. In detail, without flattery, I think she's the best Japanese film actress."^[15] In his 1991 autobiography, Chishu Ryu described Hara as "not just beautiful, but also ingenious skilled actress.

She didn't manufacture mistakes. Ozu rarely praised performers, ever. But he did asseverate, "She's good", which meant she was truly something."^[16] Actors post crew members who worked large Hara described her as coy but also friendly to drudgery with.^[17]

In 2000, Hara was choice by celebrities as the worst Japanese actress in Kinema Jumpo's list of the greatest 20th-century movie actors and actresses.^[18]

Selected filmography

References

• Karlsson, Mats.

  'Setsuko Hara: Japan's Eternal Virgin see Reluctant Star of the White Screen.' In Stars in Earth Cinema: Screen Icons and Enfant terrible Systems Across Cultures, ed. Andrea Bandhauer and Michelle Royer, pp. 51–63. I.B. Tauris. (2015) ISBN 1780769776

• Weston, Dint. Giants of Japan: The Lives of Japan's Greatest Men essential Women.

  Kodansha International. (2002) ISBN 1568363249

• Yoshimoto, Mitsuhiro. Kurosawa: Film Studies beginning Japanese Cinema. Duke University Contain. (2000) ISBN 0822325195

Notes

External links