Tomu Uchida

Directeur, Scénariste

26 avril 1898 — 7 août 1970 (72 ans)
Uchida started out at the Taikatsu studio in the early 1920s, but came to prominence at Nikkatsu, adapting literary works with the screenwriter Yasutarō Yagi in a realist style. His 1929 film A Living Puppet (Ikeru ningyo) was selected as the fourth best film of the year by the film journal, Kinema Junpo. Many of his 1930s films featured the actor Isamu Kosugi. One such work, Policeman (Keisatsukan), has been called "a tremendously stylish gangster movie about the love-hate relationship between a cop and a criminal, once childhood friends" It is Uchida’s only surviving complete silent film. Uchida borrows from Hollywood gangster films and expressionist techniques in a story of a young policeman tracking down an old friend who is now a criminal. His work from the 1920 and 1930s possess a leftist social commentary and were often some of the most critically acclaimed films of the time. Kinema Junpo selected Jinsei Gekijo as the number two film of 1936, Karininaki Zenshin as the best film of 1937, and Tsuchi as the best film of 1939. The latter was praised for its realistic depiction of the lives of poor Meiji-period tenant farmers. Unfortunately, few of Uchida's prewar works survive in their entirety.

In 1941, Uchida quit the Nikkatsu studio, and after failing to start his own production company, in 1943 began to work with the Manchukuo Film Association, although he never completed a film there. In 1945 he was taken prisoner and held in Manchuria until 1954, when he returned to Japan.

Upon he return, he joined the Toei studio. His post-war movies reveal a strong genre stylist with no immediately discernible themes, much like many golden-age Hollywood directors. Uchida effortlessly directed chamber dramas, comedies, and samurai epics, often in color, and with a forward-looking dose of irony.

Connue pour

  • Le détroit de la faim
    Le détroit de la faim1965
  • Le Mont Fuji et la lance ensanglantée
    Le Mont Fuji et la lance ensanglantée1955
  • La renarde folle
    La renarde folle1962
  • Meurtre à Yoshiwara
    Meurtre à Yoshiwara1960
  • La Légende de Miyamoto Musashi
    La Légende de Miyamoto Musashi1961
  • Les moines lanciers du temple Hozoin
    Les moines lanciers du temple Hozoin1962
  • Seul contre tous à Ichijoji
    Seul contre tous à Ichijoji1964
  • A deux sabres
    A deux sabres1963
  • Le Duel de l'aube
    Le Duel de l'aube1965
  • Earth
    Earth1939
  • Chikamatsu's Love in Osaka
    Chikamatsu's Love in Osaka1959
  • Le passage du grand Bouddha I
    Le passage du grand Bouddha I1957
  • Le passage du grand Bouddha II
    Le passage du grand Bouddha II1958
  • Le passage du grand Bouddha III
    Le passage du grand Bouddha III1959
  • Chacun dans sa coquille
    Chacun dans sa coquille1955
  • The Master Spearman
    The Master Spearman1960
  • They Are Buried Alive
    They Are Buried Alive1957
  • Hishakaku and Kiratsune: A Tale of Two Yakuza
    Hishakaku and Kiratsune: A Tale of Two Yakuza1968
  • The Outsiders
    The Outsiders1958