Japanese Film Mother

~ The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn; A Saucerful Of Secrets; Soundtrack From The Film 'More'; Ummagumma; Atom Heart Mother; Meddle; Relics; Obscured By Clouds; The Dark Side Of The Moon; Wish You Were Here; Animals; The Wall; A Momentary Lapse of Reason; Delicate Sound of Thunder; The Division Bell ~

Tired of her husband's philanderous ways, the mother of two daughters drowns her husband. With the reluctant help of the local coroner, the murder is obscured. Her daughters are having similar problems with relationships, and tend to follow their mother's example, and the coroner becomes reluctantly duplicitous. As the plot progresses, visual and spoken numbers appear in the scenes, counting from one to 100.

The attack on Pearl Harbor is presented from the Japanese point of view in this war drama. The story centers upon Natsuki, the flight navigator for Admiral Isoroku Yamaguchi, the task force commander in charge of the fateful attack. After the bombing, Natsuki returns to Japan where his fiance waits. Though they are childhood sweethearts, he, fearing that marriage will affect his competence as an officer, refuses to marry her. The war continues, and Natsuki begins to wonder if the Japanese fleet is truly invincible after they suffer a series of crushing defeats.

These rare early films from Yasujiro Ozu are considered by many to be two of the Japanese director’s finest works, paving the way for a career among the most sensitive and significant in cinema. The Only Son and There Was a Father make a graceful pair, bookending a crucial period in Japanese history. In the former, Ozu’s first sound film, made during a time of intense economic crisis, a mother sacrifices her own happiness for her son’s education; the latter, released in the midst of World War II, stars Ozu stalwart Chishu Ryu as a widowed schoolteacher whose devotion to his son ends up driving them apart. Criterion proudly presents these nearly lost treasures for the first time on home video.

It's hard to believe but 2011 is indeed the 40th anniversary of the legendary rock group, Queen. Even though lead singer, Freddie Mercury is no longer with us, their music continues to live on and manages to make an impact with each and every new generation. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the band, Universal Music Group will be reissuing all 15 studio albums as deluxe remastered editions which will include additional bonus material!

Ohyako (Junko Miyazono) is an actress who is sent to prison for a crime she did not commit. In prison she is tortured by the inmates, guards and those who out her in this hell hole. All the while she waits for the right moment when she can escape and track down those responsible for torment. Once free from prison Ohyako embarks on a journey of bloodshed with a demon tattooed across her back.

The latest Eureka two disc set of Kenji Mizoguchi films includes two of the last three films that the director made, and includes one of the only two films that the director shot in colour. Akasen Chitai and Yokihi show the director's continuing interest in the role of women in the changing world around them. Akasen Chitai represents somewhat of a change of style for Mizoguchi and, ironically, was his final film, whilst Yokihi was a rare journey into non-Japanese history which upholds the sumptuous settings of his other works whilst providing an opportunity for the film-maker to experiment visually courtesy of the Eastmancolor process.