An Actor's Revenge

An Actor's Revenge, directed by Kon Ichikawa and adapted from Otokichi Mikami's novel, is a Japanese film specially designed by the Daiei studio as a jubilee project marking veteran actor Kazuo Hasegawa's 300th screen role. Hasegawa plays a dual role: Yukinojō, an onnagata (a male kabuki actor who plays female roles) seeking revenge, and the thief Yamitarō. The film is a remake of a 1935 version of the same story, also starring Hasegawa. Ichikawa used the widescreen CinemaScope format pictorially, often framing characters in a corner of the screen against pure black negative space. The film is part of the Criterion Collection. Who it's for: anyone curious about a classic Japanese film made to mark an actor's 300th role, featuring a dual performance as an onnagata, with a strikingly pictorial visual style. Who it's not for: viewers wanting a fast paced, thrilling revenge story, since this is a slower paced work defined by its visual style.