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Kobayashi's The Human Condition

This sweeping trilogy by Masaki Kobayashi (1916-1996) about one man's struggle to remain true to his ideals during the horrors of war offers a searing, incredibly moving appraisal of humanity in all its ugliness and beauty. The nine-hour drama follows the trials of Kaji, a Japanese factory owner in Manchuria who is victimized for coming to the aid of poor Chinese laborers conscripted during Japan's occupation during the Second World War. While Kobayashi suggests the impossibility of an individual altering the ethical standards of a social system, he finds heroism in Kaji's exacting refusal to abandon homeland or humanity. Hailed by many critics as one of the greatest social epics in cinematic history, THE HUMAN CONDITION was the movie that made actor Tatsuya Nakadai a star; it's not difficult to understand why. He gives a beautifully restrained performance. "One of the most physically and emotionally grueling roles any actor has ever had to endure."– Terrence Rafferty, New York Times.

Fri, Sep 19, 2008 at 7 PM Sat, Sep 20, 2008 at 2 PM Sun, Sep 21, 2008 at 6 PM	PART I: NO GREATER LOVE DIRECTOR: MASAKI KOBAYASHI JAPAN Kaji's socialist ideals of pacifism, patriotism and righting injustice ill-equip him to fight for his country in World War II. When Kaji (Tatsuya Nakadai) becomes a mine supervisor in a forced labor camp in southern Manchuria, he and his wife (Michiyo Aratama) struggle to improve the conditions of the exploited Chinese workers. But his humanitarian efforts label him a dissenter and he is tortured, inducted into the Japanese army and forced to defend a country whose morals he increasingly finds indefensible. ( 180 min ) KOBAYASHI'S THE HUMAN CONDITION: This sweeping trilogy by Masaki Kobayashi (1916-1996) about one man's struggle to remain true to his ideals during the horrors of war offers a searing, incredibly moving appraisal of humanity in all its ugliness and beauty. The nine-hour drama follows the trials of Kaji, a Japanese factory owner in Manchuria who is victimized for coming to the aid of poor Chinese laborers conscripted during Japan's occupation during the Second World War. While Kobayashi suggests the impossibility of an individual altering the ethical standards of a social system, he finds heroism in Kaji's exacting refusal to abandon homeland or humanity. Hailed by many critics as one of the greatest social epics in cinematic history, THE HUMAN CONDITION was the movie that made actor Tatsuya Nakadai a star; it's not difficult to understand why. He gives a beautifully restrained performance. "One of the most physically and emotionally grueling roles any actor has ever had to endure."– Terrence Rafferty, New York Times. ^ Top
Sat, Sep 27, 2008 at 3 PM Sun, Sep 28, 2008 at 6:30 PM	PART II: THE ROAD TO ETERNITY DIRECTOR: MASAKI KOBAYASHI JAPAN The second film, which like parts I and III stands alone, chronicles Kaji's life in the army, which is not much better than that of the Chinese laborers he left behind. Promoted to a leadership role, he struggles to reform the inhumane practices that oppress the common soldier, only to incur the brutal wrath of fellow officers who relish their authority and power and who brand him as a "red" sympathizer. "An extraordinary achievement by any standard!"—David Fear, Time Out New York. ( 181 min ) KOBAYASHI'S THE HUMAN CONDITION: This sweeping trilogy by Masaki Kobayashi (1916-1996) about one man's struggle to remain true to his ideals during the horrors of war offers a searing, incredibly moving appraisal of humanity in all its ugliness and beauty. The nine-hour drama follows the trials of Kaji, a Japanese factory owner in Manchuria who is victimized for coming to the aid of poor Chinese laborers conscripted during Japan's occupation during the Second World War. While Kobayashi suggests the impossibility of an individual altering the ethical standards of a social system, he finds heroism in Kaji's exacting refusal to abandon homeland or humanity. Hailed by many critics as one of the greatest social epics in cinematic history, THE HUMAN CONDITION was the movie that made actor Tatsuya Nakadai a star; it's not difficult to understand why. He gives a beautifully restrained performance. "One of the most physically and emotionally grueling roles any actor has ever had to endure."– Terrence Rafferty, New York Times. ^ Top
Sat, Sep 27, 2008 at 7 PM Mon, Sep 29, 2008 at 7 PM	PART III: A SOLDIER'S PRAYER DIRECTOR: MASAKI KOBAYASHI JAPAN When the superior Russian army overruns Kaji's brigade, he is painfully forced to kill to survive, but is finally captured and sent to a forced labor camp to suffer the terrors of his Soviet "liberators." With his remaining illusions about Stalinist socialism bitterly shattered, he attempts an escape to free himself from the madness that has enveloped his life. Standing in for the director, Kaji says, "Minor facts ignored by history can be fatal to the individual." Honoring these "minor facts," Kobayshi melds the poetic with the journalistic to fashion a scathing, universal portrait of the cruelties of war. ( 190 min ) KOBAYASHI'S THE HUMAN CONDITION: This sweeping trilogy by Masaki Kobayashi (1916-1996) about one man's struggle to remain true to his ideals during the horrors of war offers a searing, incredibly moving appraisal of humanity in all its ugliness and beauty. The nine-hour drama follows the trials of Kaji, a Japanese factory owner in Manchuria who is victimized for coming to the aid of poor Chinese laborers conscripted during Japan's occupation during the Second World War. While Kobayashi suggests the impossibility of an individual altering the ethical standards of a social system, he finds heroism in Kaji's exacting refusal to abandon homeland or humanity. Hailed by many critics as one of the greatest social epics in cinematic history, THE HUMAN CONDITION was the movie that made actor Tatsuya Nakadai a star; it's not difficult to understand why. He gives a beautifully restrained performance. "One of the most physically and emotionally grueling roles any actor has ever had to endure."– Terrence Rafferty, New York Times. ^ Top