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This, the first Enoken film, was made in 1934. Production was proposed to Pierre Brillante (PB), Enoken’s theatrical troupe based at the Shochikuza Theater in Asakusa, by Iwao Mori, a producer at P.C.L. (Photo Science Laboratory), a new film company that had just been established in 1932. P.C.L. was known for its modern style, as exemplified by its first film, “Hoyoyohi Jinsei” (1933). For Enoken, who was strongly influenced by Hollywood musicals and Broadway reviews, the prospect of making a P.C.L. film that would be released in a Western-style theater was a no-brainer. Therefore, he chose Kajiro Yamamoto, who had been active at Nikkatsu Kyoto, to direct the film. The reason for this was “because he understands musical scores.

Enoken and Yamamoto’s goal seems to have been to make a Hollywood style musical. In particular, they took their inspiration from the Eddie Cantor comedies that were released in rapid succession between 1931 and 1933. Cantor, who moves chokomaka with his small body, is characterized, like Enoken, by his large, circling eyeballs. The opening song, Printemps, sung by Sadakazu Futamura, Kanta Kisaragi and Enoken with the female students in the open air, is Yes, Yes, My Baby Said Yes, Yes (composed by Con Conrad), a song from Cantor’s Whoopee! (1931). It is also performed in the middle of Romantic and Crazy in a scene where Enomoto is teased by Rirako and other female students, but visually, a similar situation can be seen in the Yes. Yes! number in Whoopee. Boku wa yuutsu da sung while studying for exams is also originally My Baby Just Cares For Me also from Cantor’s Whoope!.

Enoken no seishun suikoden (Yamamoto Kajiro, 1934).mkv

General
Container:  	Matroska
Runtime: 	1 h 25 min
Size: 	873 MiB
Video
Codec: 	x264
Resolution: 	706x480 ~> 706x529
Aspect ratio:  	4:3
Frame rate: 	29.970 fps
Bit rate: 	
BPP: 	
Audio
#1:  	2.0ch AAC

https://nitro.download/view/49F4876B8882E10/Enoken_no_seishun_suikoden_(Yamamoto_Kajiro,_1934).mkv
https://nitro.download/view/035A1046F875C0D/Enoken_no_seishun_suikoden_(Yamamoto_Kajiro,_1934)-eng.srt

Language(s):Japanese
Subtitles:English

The post Kajirô Yamamoto – Enoken no seishun suikoden AKA Romantic and Crazy (1934) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

A famous sound film comedy by Kajira Yamamoto, best known for being the mentor of Akira Kurosawa. This is actually considered a major classic of physical comedy in Japan and remains perhaps the most fondly remembered vehicle for the famous comedian Enoken, who was a major star during the pre-war period.

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A comedic tale told in four parts, this film follows the antics of the pickpocket Kinta as he is pursued by a low ranking deputy named Kurakichi. The two get into all manner of peccadilloes and encounter a range of peculiar characters as their game of cat and mouse moves across the countryside in the last days of the Tokugawa Shogunate. The title role is played by Enomoto Kenichi (known by his performance name Enoken), a star of screen and stage. Kinta the Pickpocket showcases his indefatigable energy and talent for physical comedy.

347MB | 1h 11m | 540×360 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/C9AE4E1D57EEEA9/Enoken’s_Kinta_the_Pickpocket_(1937)_-_Kajiro_Yamamoto.mkv
https://nitro.download/view/C932D3E9E6F0EE7/Enoken’s_Kinta_the_Pickpocket_(1937)_-_Kajiro_Yamamoto_-_eng_02.srt

Language(s):Japanese
Subtitles:English

The post Kajirô Yamamoto – Enoken no chakkiri kinta AKA Enoken’s Kinta the Pickpocket (1937) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Quote:
It’s the first film adaptation of Natsumi Soseki’s novel “I Am a Cat”, but I was a little disappointed when I saw it with high expectations, because it’s less than 90 minutes long and there’s no monologue about the cat, so it’s just me in the middle of the human drama. Before that, there are only a few scenes in which I appear.

The world situation at the time of the Russo-Japanese War has been replaced by that of World War I (the attack on Qingdao is shown in a newspaper article. However, since it was filmed before the war, the scenery has a certain feel to it. This atmosphere is something you can’t get in a postwar film.

Director Yamamoto is a prewar master, but after the war there are many program pictures and it may be more appropriate today to call him “Akira Kurosawa’s teacher”.

Sadao Maruyama also played Yamaarashi in “Botsu-chan” directed by Yamamoto the year before. He died the day after the end of the war after being exposed to the atomic bombing in Hiroshima while leading the Cherry Blossom Corps (Sakura Corps) in a theatrical tour.

503MB | 1h 27m | 720×480 | mkv

<https://nitro.download/view/320CC9FB8ECB1D7/1936_I_am_a_Cat_-_Yamamoto.mkv
https://nitro.download/view/CDD7AF9FEAF5891/1936_I_am_a_Cat_-_Yamamoto_-_eng_02.srt

Language(s):Japanese
Subtitles:English

The post Kajirô Yamamoto – Wagahai wa neko de aru AKA I am a Cat (1936) first appeared on Cinema of the World.