Himiko

Third century Japan. Himiko is a shaman queen; she is said to hear the voice of the god and the people are ruled by her word. Her brother Ohkimi runs the affairs of state. Then she falls in love with a man from far away and stops hearing the voice. The consequence is political: a queen without the voice has no power, and those around her move. Masahiro Shinoda directs. Shima Iwashita plays Himiko. Himiko is a historical figure, a shaman queen named in Chinese sources who ruled a territory in Japan in the third century. Very little is known about her and the film fills the gap with its own invention. The design is entirely artificial. The sets are abstract, the temple is built of stone blocks and the costumes are not historical; rather than reconstructing a period Shinoda builds a space for ritual. The subject is the political function of religious authority. Himiko's relation to the god is shown not as a matter of belief but as the ground of power. The choreography of dance and movement is at the centre; the actors work as if on a stage, and the music is by Toru Takemitsu. It belongs to the late period of the Japanese new wave and is among Shinoda's most formal films. Who it is for: viewers who like experimental period film and the Japanese new wave. Who it is not for: the narrative is slow, the acting is deliberately stylised, and it gives no historical information.