An Actor's Revenge (1963)

"Showgirl Assassin"

Kon Ichikawa's visually creative, melodramatically theatrical revenge piece gets a dual format Blu-ray and DVD release from the BFI.

Japan 1836. Yukitaro (Kazuo Hasegawa, whose 300th film this was) is an onnagata - a male actor in kabuki theatre who specialises in female roles. Like many of the actors of the time (apparently) he maintains his female persona offstage as well. When his acting troupe comes to the town where the three men live who were responsible for the death of Yuki's parents, the scene is set (literally) for him to enact his revenge by inveigling himself into their various households and causing their downfall.

A film that's far stronger on its visual imagery than the plot, which frequently takes a back seat to some inventive widescreen compositions, and boasting a colour palette that may have influence DP Nicolas Roeg when he shot the following year's THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH for Roger Corman, AN ACTOR'S REVENGE plays out very much in an atmosphere of highly stylised theatricality. Even when we aren't watching characters on a stage, it still feels as if we are watching a play onscreen. 

Acting-wise, Mr Hasegawa does make for rather a butch lady, and the way in which pretty girls throw themselves at the feet of his character in full female garb will undoubtedly be met with a raised eyebrow or two by some viewers. But hey, what do I know? Perhaps female impersonator kabuki actors were the height of sexiness back in the early eighteen hundreds.

The BFI's disc comes with a newly recorded commentary track by Japanese film expert Tony Rayns which is highly listenable to and provides a wealth of useful information. You also get Nagisa Oshima's 1995 documentary on the first 100 years of Japanese cinema (if Godzilla was mentioned I missed it, likewise the SHOGUN ASSASSIN series). Finally film-wise there are four rare archive films that last about four minutes each dating from the late 1920s and documenting Japanese life.

The discs come with the usual excellent BFI booklet, this time featuring essays on the careers of Kon Ichikawa and Kazuo Hasegawa, as well as contemporary reviews and more. All good stuff. Now, BFI, all we need from you is the same treatment for Mr Ichikawa's 1976 horror THE INUGAMIS. 

Kon Ichikawa's AN ACTOR'S REVENGE is out on dual format from the BFI on Monday 26th March 2018