Welcome to Japanese Cinema Winter 2009
This course provides an introductory survey of Japanese cinema grounded in Japanese history and a history of the film industry. Arranged thematically, the course will introduce students to many of the major genres and movements in Japanese cinema over the past 100 years. The topics we will consider include how the films engage with the specter of history, violence, gender, regional and local identity, and commodity culture. Special emphasis will be placed on the relationship between the body and landscape in terms of colonialism, regionalism, nationalism and globalization. The primary focus of the class will be on situating the films in a socio-historical context but we will also critically examine histories of Japanese cinema. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the numerous Japanese cinema offerings across the city.