Diary of a Shinjuku Thief
Diary of a Shinjuku Thief (新宿泥棒日記, Shinjuku Dorobō Nikki) is a 1968 Japanese New Wave film directed by Nagisa Ōshima.
| Diary of a Shinjuku Thief | |
|---|---|
 Japanese poster | |
| Directed by | Nagisa Ōshima |
| Written by | Nagisa Ōshima Mamoru Sasaki Masao Adachi Takeshi Tamura |
| Starring | Tadanori Yokoo Rie Yokoyama Kei Satō Jūrō Kara Moichi Tanabe Tetsu Takahashi |
| Cinematography | Sēzō Sengen Yasuhiro Yoshioka |
| Edited by | Nagisa Ōshima |
| Distributed by | Sōzōsha Art Theatre Guild |
Release date |
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Running time | 96 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Synopsis
The film centers around Birdie, a young Japanese book thief who is caught by a store clerk named Umeko. As their encounters grow increasingly fraught with tension and desire, the two become lovers and begin committing thefts together. They also take part in a kabuki play based on the lives of Yui Shōsetsu and Marubashi Chūya.
Cast
- Tadanori Yokoo as Birdey Hilltop
- Rie Yokoyama as Umeko Suzuki
- Kei Satō
- Jūrō Kara as Himself / Singer
- Moichi Tanabe
- Tetsu Takahashi
- Rokko Toura as Himself
- Fumio Watanabe as Himself
Reception
Roger Greenspun of The New York Times called most of the film dull "with an air of having been produced only for purposes of demonstration", concluding that "the result is a high-powered sterility in the midst of much energetic busyness."[1] The film was described by Ronald Bergan of The Guardian as "an explosive agitprop movie equating sexual liberation with revolution, whose impact has cooled only marginally."[2]
References
- Greenspun, Roger (6 July 1973). "Diary of a Shinjuku Thief (1968)". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- Bergan, Ronald (15 January 2013). "Nagisa Oshima obituary". The Guardian.
External links
- Diary of a Shinjuku Thief at IMDb
- Diary of a Shinjuku Thief at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)