Yellow Crow

Heinosuke Gosho (1902–1981) began his career in 1925 as a disciple of Yasujiro Shimazu at Shochiku Studio. Young Gosho immediately proved his skill at the genre of “shomin-geki,” stories of the life of ordinary people, characteristic of his mentor’s work at that studio. Gosho’s early films were criticized as “unsound” because they often involved characters physically or mentally handicapped ( The Village Bride and Faked Daughter ). Gosho’s intention, however, was to illustrate a kind of warm and sincere relationship born in pathos. Today, these films are highly esteemed for their critique of feudalistic village life. Gosho was affected by this early criticism, however, and made his next films about other subjects. This led him into a long creative slump, although he continued to make five to seven films annually.

The first film by Gosho to attract attention was Lonely Hoodlum of 1927, a depiction of the bittersweet life of common people, Gosho’s characteristic subject. In 1931 Shochiku gave him the challenge of making the first Japanese “talkie” (because many established directors had refused). The film, Next Door Madame and My Wife , was welcomed passionately by both audiences and critics. It is a light and clever comedy that effectively uses ambient sounds such as a baby’s cries, an alarm clock, a street vendor’s voice, and jazz music from next door. Because every sound had to be synchronized, Gosho explored many technical devices, and used multiple cameras, different lenses, and frequent cuts to produce a truly “filmic” result.

Gosho preferred many cuts and close-up shots, a practice he related to his studying Lubitsch carefully in his youth. Gosho’s technique of creating a poetic atmosphere with editing is most successful in Dancer of Izu , in which he intentionally chose the silent film form after making several successful talkies.

Even after the success of these films, Gosho had to accept many projects which he did not want to do. He later reflected that only those films that he really wanted to do were well-made. For example, he found the subject of The Living most appealing—its protagonist tries to protest against social injustice but is unable to continue his struggle to the end.

Gosho is believed to be at his best making films depicting the human side of life in his native Tokyo ( Woman of Pale Night, Song of the Flower Basket, Where Chimneys Are Seen , and Comparison of Heights ). However, the director also worked in many other genres, including romantic melodrama, family drama, light comedy, and social drama. He further extended his range in such films as An Elegy , a contemporary love story, and A Woman of Osore-zan , which is unusual for its unfamiliar dark tones and its eccentricity. His experimental spirit is illustrated by his story of the treatment of a disturbed child with color-oriented visual therapy in Yellow Crow. Throughout his career, Gosho expressed his basic belief in humanistic values. The warm, subtle, and sentimental depiction of likable people is characteristic both of Gosho’s major studio productions and his own independent films. —filmreference