Obscure Japanese Film #248

Toru Shimamura

ThisNikkatsu production was based on the autobiographical novel of thesame name by one of Japan’s major writers, Yasushi Inoue (1907-91).The book was translated into English by Jean Oda Moy in 1991, butInoue’s sequel, Zoku Shirobamba, has been neither filmed nortranslated, and the fact that Nikkatsu never made the sequel suggeststhat this film was not especially profitable. The story concernsInoue’s own childhood in Izu in the early Taisho period (1912-26)when Inoue was around seven years old, and the title refers to thewhite aphids that the children would try to catch in the autumn.

Izumi Ashikawa

Inoue’salter ego is Kosaku (played here by Toru [later Miki] Shimamura),whose rural upbringing is unusual in that his parents, though living,are absent, and he’s brought up by his lategreat-great uncle’smistress, known as Granny Onui (Tanie Kitabayashi). He’s all she’sgot, so she spoils him, and he’s very attached to her as a result.The only other person he really likes is Sakiko(Izumi Ashikawa),whom he calls his eldersister although she’s actually his aunt. Unfortunately, shelooks down on Onui and there’s no love lost between the two women.Sakiko lives in the ‘Upper House’ nearby with Kosaku’s otherrelations, but he feels uncomfortable there and avoids them. Kosakugets the highest grades in his year at school and his family has ahigher social status than his classmates’, so he feels different tothe other boys and great things are expected of him.

Jacket of the novel in English translation

Readingthe novel in translation a while ago I was reminded of the films ofKeisuke Kinoshita and wondered if the book had ever been filmed;looking it up, I found that not only had it been, but that thescreenwriter was none other than Keisuke Kinoshita himself. However,it’s directed not by him, but by Eisuke Takizawa, who seems to havebeen Nikkatsu’s director of choice for their more prestigiousliterary adaptations during this period (not a genre they’re widelyremembered for).

Jukichi Uno

Ihad high hopes for this film but, although its superficiallyfaithful, one of the strengths of the book is its lack ofsentimentality, and it was disappointing to see the storysentimentalised as it has been here, especially in regard to composerTakanobu Saito’s clichéd use of mandolin and harp. There’s alsobeen an overall softening of tone – to give a couple of examples,in the book, the schoolteachers think nothing of dishing out corporalpunishment, and Sakiko is an arrogant snob, while here the teachers(one of whom is played by a twinkly-eyed Jukichi Uno in old man make-up) are far moregenial and Sakiko – perhaps partly due to the casting of popularstar Ishikawa – is a much gentler character.

Tanie Kitabayashi

Talkingof casting, I felt that a lack of imagination was evident in hiring51-year-old character actress Tanie Kitabayashi to do her old grannyact yet again when Sachiko Murase would have been a far better fitfor the complex character described by Inoue. Well-made though it is,ultimately I couldn’t help feeling that the film would have hadmore depth if it had been cast and scored differently and directed byKinoshita or Miyoji Ieki instead of Takizawa.

A note on the title:

Thetitle can be written as Shirobamba or Shirobanba inEnglish; the character んisusually written as ‘n’ in translation, but when pronounced beforea ‘b’, it’s natural to close the mouth more fully, so it comesout sounding more like an ‘m’. This is also the reason why bothTetsuro Tanba and Tetsuro Tamba can be considered correct.

Thanksto A.K.

DVDat Amazon Japan (no English subtitles)

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