Year: 1986
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Director: Hayashi Kaizo
Screenplay: Hayashi Kaizo
Cinematography: Nagata Yuichi
Cast: Sano Shiro, Kamura Moe, Fukamizu Fujiko, Otake Koji
Runtime: 80 min
Trailer: on YouTube
Seen at the third Zipangu Fest at the Cinema Museum in London.
Long before Hazanavicius’s L’artiste (The Artist, France, 2011) came Hayashi Kaizo’s 「夢みるように眠りたい」 (Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai/To Sleep So As to Dream), which was made in 1986 as a homage to the era of silent film in Japanese cinema. Although some VHS copies of Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai were apparently floating around for a while, it is nowadays one of those creations that has been forgotten – a real loss, because between the two, Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is, in my (very biased) opinion, the better film – featuring a story that’s more original and a style that takes more risks.
The plot seems deceptively simple: Uozuka (Sano Shiro), a private detective, and his assistant Kobayashi (Otake Koji) receive a phone call from an elderly lady, Madame Sakura (Fukamizu Fujiko), and her assistant, about the kidnapping of a young woman by the name of Bellflower (Kamura Moe). To find and save her, the investigators are given several clues to puzzle out, yet when they arrive where the woman is meant to be, the kidnappers have already disappeared and left yet another riddle behind, leading the two men on an increasingly mysterious trail that seems to lead somewhere and nowhere all at the same time. As they decode the signs, the line between what is real and what imaginary becomes less and less clear, the film entering the sort of dreamlike territory that invokes the stories of Pessoa (O marinheiro/The Mariner, Portugal, 1913), Borges (Las ruinas circulares/The Circular Ruins, Argentina, 1941), and Robbe-Grillet (Dans le labyrinthe/In the Labyrinth, France, 1956).
Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is one of those works that came to be purely for the love of film and belief in the medium. Hayashi Kaizo, the film’s director, had dropped out of Kyoto’s Ritsumeikan University (where he had studied economics for two years), and turned to theatre instead, joining the Tenjosaijiki theatre group of Terayama Shuji, a seminal figure in Japan’s avant-garde. When Terayama died and the group consequently disbanded, Hayashi turned to filmmaking. Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai was his rather impressive debut: though he had no experience in the world of film, he wrote the script, got a small budget, cast and crew together, and somehow created this gem of a homage to the era of silent cinema in Japan. The film is, in fact, not entirely silent itself, but rather it is ‘sounded’ – and cleverly so: the telephone rings, the sweet melody of a lullaby reverberates across the screen,1 the reel of a film lightly rattles – it’s all accompanying sounds of this sort. Direct verbal utterances, meanwhile, are absent: any essential dialogue or narration is provided through the means of intertitles (a characteristic feature of silent films) and words are only actually spoken aloud as part filmic material within the film (i.e. in the form of a benshi, or live-narrator for Japanese silent films, who appears in a particular scene within Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai in which a film is being shown).
The recurring scenes of a film-within-a-film introduce metatexuality into Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai that operates on multiple levels, the exact boundaries between the film we are watching and the film we are watching within the film we are watching becoming increasingly – and fascinatingly so – fuzzy. As a narrative device the use of metatexuality signals the film’s awareness of and commentary on its own medium – not surprising, given that Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is a tribute to silent cinema – but is also a playful tool for mystery. Indeed, the filmmakers of Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai are very much at play, inserting little jokes into the story (one detective’s quirky addiction to boiled eggs, another’s eye-bulging fixation on money) or offering up other forms of entertainment: paper dolls, old-style fairgrounds with merry-go-rounds, tricksters and magicians of sorts, all of which transport us to wondrous places and times long ago. Some of these likely make specific references to the storytelling and silent film traditions of old in Japan, though I’m afraid I can’t provide much insight here. What I do know, however, is that Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is not Hayashi’s only work to the evoke the past of cinema, his Hama Maiku Private Eye trilogy「私立探偵 濱マイク」シリーズ/Shiritsu tantei hama maiku shirīzu) – consisting of 「我が人生最悪の時」 (Waga jinsei saiaku no toki/The Most Terrible Time in My Life, 1994), 「遥かな時代の階段を」 (Harukana jidai no kaidan o/Stairway to the Distant Past, 1995) and 「罠 THE TRAP」 (Wana/The Trap, 1996) -, recalling Japanese gangster movies, French New Wave cinema as well as American film noir.
Shot in black and white, Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai also offers magnificent camera angles and gorgeous shots throughout, for example when the two detectives climb up a geometric network of stepladders inside a tower – see image above. Few stills can be found online, and if, they tend to be rather blurry, but be assured Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is as much a delight for the eyes as it is for the soul and mind.
In the end, I can only repeat what my friend E, whom I went to see this film with, and I both scribbled on the post-screening questionnaire: Please show again soon! And though watching Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai on real, physical film in an atmospheric location like London’s Cinema Museum is half the charm, I will add: please someone release this on DVD so that more cinephiles can enjoy this gem, regardless of where in the UK, or rather, the world they are.
Overall Verdict: Long forgotten, Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai is a film that should be remembered, screened and watched (and rescreened and rewatched some more): it’s dreamy delight for any cinephile.
Rating: 9/10 (If I had better knowledge of the era of silent film in Japan, I’m sure I would score it even higher – for now I just know that there are some wonderful references I’m missing out on.)
Footnote
1 I’m assuming it’s a lullaby based on the “Oyasumi” (meaning “Good night”) in the untranslated song lyrics.
Bonus Bits
- I’m truly hoping this will rescreen in London some time sooner rather than later. There is much to analyse here, but I don’t quite yet feel confident without having seen Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai at least for a second time. The title – and certain aspects within the film – for example raise a thematic question in terms of sleep, dream and death.
- Website for a screening that took place back in 2007 in Seattle. Provides some interesting information about the film and its director.
- A very enlightening review of the film from someone who saw it at a film festival in Seattle way back. You might prefer to read this review after you’ve seen the film as it provides many more details about the plot. These are insightful, but the first time round I would recommend you lose yourself in this story with as little advance knowledge as possible. Just let yourself be transported into a surreal world.
- Clips from other Hayashi films.
- An article on Hayashi’s Hama Maiku trilogy, for which is he is probably best known internationally.
- Hama Maiku trilogy at amazon.co.uk (US-Import Region 1 DVDs only). If you are based in North America, order directly from amazon.com.
- Link to the website of the Zipangu Fest. I will be reviewing two more films from the festival.
- Again, another link to London’s Cinema Museum.
Image Gallery
As I have already noted few screenshots are to be found on the internet and most are, unfortunately, of a not particularly good quality. Still, just so you can get some sense of a visual impression of the Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai:
“The recurring scenes of a film-within-a-film introduce metatexuality”
My word, I better start getting out my film making/literature books and revising before we meet. I don’t want to appear to dull 😉
This looks so awesome. I have some questions about it and a Chilean filmmaker but they’ll have to wait until tomorrow. I need to watch Kotoko now.
Sorreeeee. In academia, terms like metatextual, intertextual, etc. come up all the time so they don’t even strike me as particularly sophisticated anymore but simply as rather useful… But I wouldn’t think someone is dull if they don’t use terminology from literary theory (in fact, I’d judge you more harshly if you used an excess of fancy words). Also, I’m sure you know a lot more about anime, J-films in general and that your Japanese is fab compared to my singular words (and so forth).
I’m sure you’d have loved this. I really hope you get to see it somewhere, sometime – it seems to screen very, very rarely only. It’s the sort of thing the Japanese Embassy would pick up though, their screenings normally involve real (i.e. not digital) films.
Chilean filmmaker? Hmmm.
Enjoy (?) Kotoko.
I know what those big words mean! I use terms like metatextual all of the time. It’s the first thing I say when I get up in the morning. I won’t mention when I use intertextual… A bit risque. 😛
Chilean filmmaker – Raul Ruiz – you are a film blogger who has an interest in South American literature and film so I was wondering if you have watched The Three Crowns of the Sailor.
I watched it a few years ago and I have been desperate to get another opinion on it because it was so mind-boggling.
Your sense of humour…
How about ‘ontological break’?
Not familiar with Raul Ruiz or The Three Crowns of the Sailor,
though it’s rather curious that film was made in French. It seems a bit scarce in the online stores, but my uni library appears to have a copy. I will have to go check it to see if it’s the right region as the ones they sell all seem to be Region 1 only (which I can’t watch).
Ontological break? Is that a threat???
My university library has the Criterion Collection for Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Thankfully I have a multi-region DVD player!
Ontological break is one of those terms that doesn’t seem to appear anywhere – I have that from a class on postmodern literature I once took. Have you read Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy?
I don’t have a DVD player, I watch on the computer and HATE the fact that you are essentially stuck on one region. I have DVDs I legally purchased that I cannot watch. That’s not how it should be.
Nope. I haven’t read that many of the ‘big’ American novelists. “Cosmopolis” killed off any interest I had in them.
I’m not sure Paul Auster falls under ‘big American novelists’. The New York Trilogy is postmodern (not as painful as something like Gravity’s Rainbow but still postmodern). It’s an anti-detective novel and features an example of an ontological break.
The New York Trilogy does sound interesting.
Also, Criterion’s Akira Kurosawa collection. If they did a Kiyoshi Kurosawa collection, I’d be overjoyed.
I have a copy of The New York Trilogy, but it’s probably at my parents. I can check at Christmas.
Ahhh, the long wishlist for DVD releases…
Actually, I just checked. I have the copy of The New York Trilogy here after all!
If you do watch Three Crowns of the Sailor, I’d love to read what you think. It will appeal to your taste.
I will definitely watch it. Just need to go and pay off my fines… x_x
You reminded me that I need to renew library books!
To Sleep So As to Dream looks interesting. The Maiku Hama trilogy ? Count me in. I like film noir. Perhaps I can convince the local library to buy or borrow it.
I wish I had a region 1 DVD player because I would even be willing to purchase a copy of the Maiku Hama trilogy myself! Especially after having seen Hayashi’s wonderful debut.
I hope you manage to convince your library! Who knows, they might even have it (I guess university libraries would be the best bet, since they are more likely to have a diverse and international selection of films).
It can’t hurt to try. They borrowed an out of print book* for me from another library.
There’s also a local “art house” theater that rents dvds/tapes. A long shot.
*Momo by Michael Ende. Momo was featured in the K Drama, My Lovely Sam Soon. Ende also authored The Neverending Story. Neverending was one of my son’s favorite movies. He practically wore that tape out.
I know Momo! Read that as a child. The Neverending Story too, but I always liked Momo better. There is a movie for Momo as well.
I did know it was mentioned in that k-drama, because it came up as a reference in the You’re My Pet movie (that disaster of a movie), which made me wonder why Koreans would be familiar with Momo. Yet when googling for an answer I soon discovered that for some reason or another it’s a well-known book there and also that the mention in My Lovely Sam Soon popularised it even more.
Hmm, we’ve already talked about borrowing films, what about books 😉 Maybe we can trade. Short stories by H.G. Wells? Do you like Angela Carter?
I’m not one for double-dipping when it comes to films/anime (I’ve only done it a few times and the last was when Beez released a Patlabor 2 Special Edition version) but if someone came out with a Kiyoshi Kurosawa collection in a nice enough set, I would take leave of my faculties and spend silly money on it.
I will admit (and happily so) I’m a book snob. I like postmodern and modern the best – Julio Cortázar, Jorge Luis Borges, Fernando Pessoa, J.M. Coetzee, Murakami, weird experiments like Virginia Woolf’s The Waves (probably one of her least read), Keri Hulme’s The Bone People, David Malouf’s Remembering Babylon. Love plays like Waiting for Godot, Six Characters in Search of an Author and poetry too (Seamus Heany!)
I think I only ever read Carter’s Nights at the Circus (incidentally in the same class on postmodern literature where I read The New York Trilogy and learned about the ontological break). Don’t remember when I last read H.G. Wells.
London’s not been very conducive to reading fiction though, I’ve read max three books this year. 🙁
I’ve got a massive back-log of books/manga. I polished off two sub-par graphic novels today and now I’m going to attempt to hack my way through a horror novel that has taken my four weeks to get 50 pages through…
No horror. Also not in books. No no no.
No horror at all?
If you ever want to take a chance though, a film worthy of breaking a vow of “no horror”, a classic black and white, independent film, Night of the Living Dead * would be it.
I’d recommend watching it during a thunderstorm, with no other lights on in the house. My brother and i did that very thing. We’d even seen the movie before and it was still scary!
* We watched Night of the Living Dead on KTVU’s television program, Creature Features. Read more about the show’s host, Bob Wilkins.
Ah, nostalgia. Bob was the perfect host for horror movies.
Can’t get enough of the Grim Reaper in Arang? I recently watched a Japanese film, Shinigami no Seido /Accuracy of Death. Have you seen it? A different take on the Grim Reaper.
You guys all want me to have nightmares with these horror movies?!
Ahhh, I’m about 6 or 7 episodes behind on the awesome Arang 🙁
Not even horror books? Not even Victorian ghost stories? Do you have any fun?
And no. Slow cinema is not fun.
Gothic literature is fine. But no Stephen King or things of the sort.
Funny, The Shining is one of the back-log of books!
Fun? I suppose I would watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail for the gazillionth time, would that count?
I like what I read/watch, including the super-slow stuff!
Or I entertain myself with things like this.
The above was a attempt at humour. My apologies. When I complete my review archives, you will be surprised at some of the titles (it’s not all horror). As for now, time for a K-horror!!!
おやすみ！
🙂 at the Sesame Street clip. I consider waiting for Godot scary. Now THAT, I will not watch. I can handle serial killers, yurei and bakemono but existential horror from Beckett? NO WAY! Stop trying to give me nightmares before I go to sleep.
おやすみ！
The clip cracks me up every time I see it (and I have seen it more than a dozen times for sure). It even alludes to the suicide-scene in the play.
I saw it in London two years ago with Ian McKellen as a one of the hobos. It was sooooo amazing. I would go see it ever year, especially if Mr Gandalf performs in it. (He such a brilliant theatre actor.)
I guess with the absurd it’s either you like or you don’t. I loooooove it. おやすみ！