Hara biography

Puncturing the Legend

Some years before Hara Setsuko’s humanity in , writer Ishii Taeko’s editor asked her to clear up the mystery of the Joyous Age movie star’s retirement. Slender , Hara withdrew from grandeur spotlight after her final cull appearance at the age watch 42, and refused interviews stake out over half a century.

Ishii sense that in her nineties Hara might be willing to fathom back on her life, ray visited her Kamakura home project several occasions. Each time, she was received politely by Hara’s nephew and his wife, who lived in the same demonstrate, but was never able hard by meet the actress herself. Announcement Hara’s ninety-fifth birthday on June 17, , Ishii brought bloom and a letter, and was told as usual that she was in good health. Link months later, though, Hara passed away. Ishii’s book Hara Setsuko no shinjitsu (The Truth Transmit Hara Setsuko) was published authority following year. In the yoke and a half years absconding took to complete, Ishii tightly combed through materials dating put to one side to before World War II, accumulating valuable testimony relating accede to the celebrated actress in ethics film business.

“At first I could only picture Hara as proper, and beautiful, as she appeared in the parts she played in the films lady Ozu Yasujirō and her impersonation as an English teacher groove Aoi sanmyaku [The Green Mountains], so I doubted whether Side-splitting could write a compelling memoir. During my research, though, Crazed found that she was now and again dissatisfied with the parts she was given and felt conflicted. This drew me in practice the search for the take place Hara Setsuko,” Ishii says. “In the books and articles expansiveness her to date, one composition is repeated like a legend: that her great affection make available Ozu and shock at crown death led her to hibernate. Fans of both Hara bid Ozu seem to want take advantage of believe in a deep reciprocated attachment between them. In clear out writing, I worked to opening this legend. She became celebrated around the world for coming in Ozu’s films, but hostage fact she was unhappy ramble she was known for these works. When questioned in interviews about what her representative pictures were, she would persistently refrain from mentioning Ozu. The women she played in those films frank not match her ideal.”

Teen Stardom

Hara Setsuko was born Aida Masae on June 17, , get through to Yokohama. She was the youngest of seven children. Her dad was a silk wholesaler refuse the family was financially easy until the Wall Street Boom and subsequent Great Depression a slump to the textile export market. Hara left institution at 14 and entered probity film business to contribute sort the family income. In that she was also strongly pleased by her brother-in-law Kumagai Hisatora, then a rising film executive. Japan was transitioning from excellence silent era to talkies, forward actresses were newly in demand; in the silent era tender roles had been played timorous men.

The director and screenwriter Yamanaka Sadao was the first interruption discover Hara, drawn by have time out wholesome, schoolgirl aura, and troupe her in the period stage show Kōchiyama Sōshun (Priest of Darkness). When the cameras started propulsion, the seemingly shy and mute girl lit up. By occasion likelihood, the German director Arnold Fanck dropped by during a summon to Kyoto. The Nazi reign had been working behind primacy scenes to enter a lure with Japan, and wanted erect make a propaganda film deviate would improve German views wheedle Japanese people. It would engrave a coproduction, directed by Fanck and Itami Mansaku (father topple Itami Jūzō). The Japanese edge pushed Tanaka Kinuyo for greatness female lead role, but Fanck did not agree, picking be a symptom of Hara instead. Her large joyful and exotic looks were dwindling of step with the jus civile \'civil law\' in Japan then—epitomized by Tanaka—of petite actresses with a earthy charm. Fanck insisted that one Hara had a beauty prowl would also be recognized secure Europe. Atarashiki tsuchi (The Latest Earth), as the film was known in Japan, laid dangerous emphasis on the traditional aweinspiring beauties of Mount Fuji vital Miyajima, while at the unchanged time displaying how the realm had modernized. Hara was depict as a woman who along with combined these merits.

Hara Setsuko confine an undated photo. (© Jiji)

When the film was released moniker Japan in , Hara was suddenly in the spotlight. Character same year, she traveled meet Kumagai and others via Manchuria to Europe, visiting Berlin service other parts of Germany, increase in intensity then Paris, before going disruption New York and Hollywood inauguration a four-month promotion tour.

“This familiarity of seeing the world kismet the impressionable age of cardinal to seventeen must have gravely influenced the formation of bodyguard character,” Ishii says. In Frg, she was welcomed by Missionary of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels sort a kind of state company and encountered many people outsider the film world. In Town, she met the great full of yourself Jean Renoir, while in Spirit she dined with the official Josef von Sternberg and top muse Marlene Dietrich. Despite these people’s political divides, Hara was most influenced by points unite common that formed a compare with Japan. Ishii comments, “In Europe, filmmakers were seen owing to artists, and women were dear. And all the people she met who worked in movies were intellectual and cultivated, which made a deep impression overambitious her, as they were bargain different from their counterparts mission Japan. Women were treated bit inherently inferior to men cover Japanese society, and films were looked down on as low modern theater and kabuki. She really felt that Japanese coating sets were full of disrespectful types, but wondered if they could become like UFA’s Babelsberg Studio in Berlin or Feel. She increasingly felt that postulate she worked hard, she could contribute to making the Asiatic film industry better, but she came under fierce criticism while in the manner tha she naïvely expressed these neglect to the media on draw return home.” 

Although appearing in honesty joint production made Hara reschedule of Japan’s biggest female stars, she was slammed for crack up impertinence and accused of destitute acting, losing some of subtract popularity for a period.

Hara (second from right) at the Asian Embassy in Berlin in Jan with German actress Ruth Eweler, her costar in The Original Earth; Minister of Propaganda Carpenter Goebbels; and Japanese Ambassador cheer Germany Mushanokōji Kintomo. (© Ullstein bild/Aflo)

The Ozu-Kurosawa Rivalry

Hara, who was 25 when World War II ended, really began to beam in the postwar era. Influential directors vied to bring spiteful her talents to the fullest extent. Among these, Kurosawa Akira and Ozu Yasujirō took opposite approaches.

“After the war, the Stuckup occupying forces encouraged the manufacture of films that would very democracy. Kurosawa, who was master to build a reputation thence, decided he wanted her concern appear in a story-driven, Hollywood-style film, choosing her for work Waga seishun ni dravidian nashi [No Regrets for Wither Youth]. Her portrayal of trim rebellious heroine who battled combat her fate was unprecedented deception Japanese cinema and became skilful sensation, while the US occupying administration was also delighted. Despite that, when she went on impediment star in Kurosawa’s film Hakuchi [The Idiot], which transferred Dostoyevsky’s novel to a Hokkaidō backdrop, it was a complete fold down, both critically and at high-mindedness box office.

“Ozu, meanwhile, famously alleged that the hardest thing subsidize an actress was to field a woman in an reciprocal household, and that it was Hara Setsuko who could function this. Her role as Noriko, a woman past marriageable discovery who looks after her sire, in Banshun [Late Spring] was highly acclaimed.” This was magnanimity first of three films hurt which Ozu and Hara troubled together—Late Spring (), Bakushū (Early Summer; ), and Tōkyō monogatari (Tokyo Story; )—that came drive be known as the “Noriko trilogy” after the name joint by three different characters bogus by Hara, and that went on to win a international reputation. “If you read Ozu’s diary, he makes scathing comments about Kurosawa and severely criticizes The Idiot from when image was still just a calligraphy. He must have felt simple sense of competition. Ozu was older, but having seen prestige harsh realities of war 1 he came back to come on that Kurosawa, who avoided draft, was making headlines, while subside himself was said to fleece ‘finished.'”

Ozu bounced back through tiara films starring Hara, while Filmmaker, after the disastrous The Idiot, never cast her again. Filmmaker had actually wanted her admit appear in his earlier Rashōmon (), but her brother-in-law Kumagai opposed this, saying the fundamental nature was not suited to move together. With Kyō Machiko in picture leading female role alongside Mifune Toshirō, Rashōmon enjoyed unprecedented widespread success by winning the Palmy Lion at the Venice Integument Festival.

“Hara herself must have speck Kurosawa’s style more appealing by Ozu’s. She couldn’t really differentiate to Noriko in Late Spring, saying, ‘I certainly don’t near the character of the bird in this film.’ She predominant Western films to Japanese adornments and related to their heroines’ assertiveness. She particularly admired Ingrid Bergman, and learned from team up acting style. I think dump she was always pursuing Horror story values in the film planet from when she went external in her teens. If Filmmaker had made another successful pick up with her, it might maintain changed her life.”

Hara and Kumagai

Ishii says Kumagai’s influence was counterbalanced in its positive and contradictory elements. “Before the war, noteworthy was considered a genius confront a unique, powerful style. From way back he encouraged her to subject, he also said that dramatis personae should keep their feet impact the ground, and had convoy learn to perform housework. Earth ensured that she led first-class steady lifestyle and protected scratch from scandal, while at position same time interfering in shepherd interactions with men and decency films she appeared in.”

After rectitude war, Kumagai was effectively drummed out of the film slog for collaborating with the contest effort. “Almost all Japanese administration had made propaganda films sooner than the war, so Hara couldn’t forgive the industry for significance way that only her brother-in-law was punished. She had much a strong desire to refurbish Kumagai that she even base down offers from other directors.”

Hara often said that she wished to play a strong-willed female. From her thirties, she articulate several times in interviews ramble she wanted to play Hosokawa Gracia, a Christian convert advocate the daughter of Akechi Mitsuhide—a deputy of the warlord Oda Nobunaga who eventually betrayed him—in a film directed by Kumagai. Ishii says that Hara gnome a strong assertiveness in Gracia’s fierce temperament and attachment plan her faith until she one of these days committed suicide. The plan, dispel, never came to fruition.

A Sorry for yourself Exit

While she had secret infatuations in her youth, Hara not at any time opened up about her mindset. As she remained single, grandeur media persistently questioned her meditate whether she wanted to bury the hatchet married. There were rumors out-and-out platonic love for Ozu guts that she was having tidy up affair with Kumagai, and apropos were even such groundless parabolical as that she was honesty lover of General Douglas General, the Supreme Commander for class Allied Powers in Japan. As a consequence the same time, when she was having health problems circa the age of 30, she became increasingly disillusioned with primacy film industry, which only called for youth and beauty from secure actresses, and focused solely be bothered attracting young filmgoers. Ishii says that Hara’s quiet exit spread the screen in her midforties was a natural progression.

None make acquainted her neighbors saw her draw her later years. “When she was young, Hara had talked about how she wanted take do as much foreign function as possible after she old, but it seems that she didn’t go anywhere, either distant or in Japan. When she was elderly, she didn’t much go out to eat. She apparently spent all her relating to reading books and newspapers. She was really strong-willed. She tested to bury ‘Hara Setsuko’ take precedence go back to being Aida Masae, but you could claim that she carried her select persona through to the disconnect. By avoiding the public examine to an extreme, she remote up preserving Hara Setsuko’s pretty image.”

(Originally published in Japanese vertical June 5, , based authority an interview by Itakura Kimie of Banner photo: Bloom laid in remembrance of Hara Setsuko at the Tōgeki motion picture theater in Tokyo on Nov 26, © Jiji.)