When a Woman Ascends the Stairs: Basic Facts Flashcards

Description

This set of cards will test your knowledge on the basic facts that you should remember when it comes to answering the International Cinema question within the exam.
Ethan Soffe
Flashcards by Ethan Soffe, updated more than 1 year ago
Ethan Soffe
Created by Ethan Soffe over 8 years ago
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Resource summary

Question Answer
What year was "When a Woman Ascends the Stairs" released? 1960 (January 5th 1960)
Who directed "When a Woman Ascends the Stairs"? Mikio Naruse
Who produced and wrote the screenplay for this film? Ryuzo Kikushima
Who composed the score for this film? Toshiro Mayuzumi
Who coordinated the cinematography? Masao Tamai
What was the company that distributed this film? Toho Studios
What were the key defining films that Toho distributed during the period of Japanese Cinema 1950-1970? Ikiru (1952) Gojira (1954) Seven Samurai (1954) Throne of Blood (1957) The Hidden Fortress (1958) Yojimbo (1961)
Who is leading actress who portrays Keiko Yashiro (AKA to her colleagues, "Mama-San)? Hideko Takamine
Who portrays Nobuhiko Fujisaki? Masayuki Mori
Who portrays Junko Inchihashi? (Keiko's best friend) Reiko Dan
Who portrays Yuri? Keiko Awaji
Who portrays Kenichi Komatsu (AKA Keiko's Manager) Tatsuya Nakadai
Who portrays Matsukichi Sekine? Daisuke Katō
Who portrays Goda? Ganjirō Nakamura
Who are Keiko's three main customers? . Matsukichi Sekine . Nobuhiko Fujisaki . Goda
What is the running time of this film? 111 Minutes
What is Keiko's primary motivation during this film? She desires to become less dependent on male customers for money but rather become the exploiter by opening her own bar without dishonouring her late husband.
What is Yuri's conflict during the film and what is her fate? Yuri has her own bar and is deeply in debt leading her to "attempt" to fake a suicide by overdosing on sleeping pills to scare off creditors. However, she ultimately dies.
What is Keiko Yashiro's primary conflict during the film? She struggles to maintain her independence in a male-dominated society, everyone including friends and family desire something from her, she begins to fall for Fujisaki, a married man and father and is constantly in debt.
How is this film different from other Toho-produced films? This is a "documentary" style drama exploring a certain style of life in late 50's to early 60's Japan whilst Toho was known for producing more action-oriented films such as, the samurai genre with Kurosawa's films.
Who edited this film? Eiji Ooi
How does this film compare to Naruse's other works? The film implements the concept of "mono no aware" which is the idea of "fading beauty" suggesting that this film is self-aware melodrama which was common in Naruse's works.
What key themes does this film demonstrate? . Tradition VS Modernity . Male Dominance . Grief . Honour . Internal Battle . Gender Conflict (explored subtly with Keiko's desire of becoming the exploiter)
What are the key pieces of dialogue that Keiko Yashiro delivers that convey this "melodrama" format? "I hated climbing those stairs more than anything. But once I was up, I would take each day as it came." "I hate liquor, yet I drink my fill every night." "Women in the Ginza fought desperately for survival. It was a battle I couldn't afford to lose. "
What key components of Italian Neo-Realism does this film share? . A documentary visual style . The use of real locations . The lack of an "artificial" style of cinematography . An emphasis of character emotons
What key components of French New Wave does this film share? . On-location filming . Low budget-style film-making . Anti-authoritarian Protagonist (Keiko)
What was the budget for this film? Roughly $800,000 Converts to roughly 87,000,000 yen
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