An Unforgettable Grudge
Plot
Set during the turbulent Bakumatsu period (the final years of the Edo shogunate), the story follows two brothers, Kazuma and Tsugio Iki, who both fall deeply in love with the same woman, Yukie. Their lives take a tragic turn when Tsugio loses his sight during a violent sword fight, leading Yukie to devote herself to nursing him back to health, eventually falling in love with him in return. Kazuma, feeling he has lost everything—his love, his family bond, and his place in society—descends into a nihilistic despair. The film culminates in a legendary, frantic battle where Kazuma takes a final, suicidal stand against an overwhelming force of enemies, fighting with desperate ferocity until he is finally slain.
About the Production
This film marked the first collaboration between director Daisuke Itō and actor Denjirō Ōkōchi, a partnership that would define the 'Golden Age' of Japanese period films. It was also Itō's first project after joining the major studio Nikkatsu. Originally spanning six reels, the production was noted for its ambitious scale, particularly a climax that originally lasted over 30 minutes (three full reels) and featured hundreds of extras.
Historical Background
The mid-1920s in Japan was a period of intense modernization and social unrest known as the Taisho Democracy era. Filmmakers like Itō were reacting against the rigid, formalistic 'Old School' of period dramas, seeking to reflect the nihilism and frustration felt by the youth of the time. This film was released just before the government began a major crackdown on leftist and 'subversive' art, making it a key document of a brief window of radical creative freedom in Japanese cinema.
Why This Film Matters
An Unforgettable Grudge is credited with inventing the 'modern' jidaigeki. It moved the genre away from slow, stylized swordplay toward fast-paced, realistic action and psychological depth. It established the archetype of the 'nihilistic hero'—a lone, disenfranchised warrior fighting against a corrupt system—which would influence directors like Akira Kurosawa and Masaki Kobayashi decades later.
Making Of
Daisuke Itō wanted to break away from the static, stage-like presentation of traditional Kabuki-influenced cinema. To achieve the frantic energy of the final battle, he instructed his cameraman, Rokuzō Watarai, to move the camera constantly, often running alongside the actors. This was physically demanding and required innovative rigging for the heavy silent-era cameras. The production also faced challenges in choreographing the 'amok run' of the protagonist, as Itō insisted on a level of violence and speed that was unprecedented in the jidaigeki genre at the time.
Visual Style
The film utilized a 'mobile camera' style that was revolutionary for its time. Cinematographer Rokuzō Watarai used fast-moving tracking shots, unusual low and high angles, and rapid cutting to create a sense of chaos and urgency. The surviving fragment also showcases the use of double exposure and rhythmic editing to mirror the protagonist's fractured mental state.
Innovations
The film is a landmark for its use of 'rapid-fire' editing and handheld-style camera movement long before such techniques became standard. It successfully integrated European avant-garde visual techniques into a traditional Japanese historical setting.
Music
As a silent film, it originally had no recorded soundtrack. It was accompanied in theaters by a 'benshi' (narrator) and a live orchestra. Modern screenings of the restored fragment often feature a score by John Sweeney or traditional benshi performances by masters like Ichirō Kataoka.
Famous Quotes
The title itself, 'Chōkon' (Eternal Regret), is often cited as the defining sentiment of the film's nihilistic hero.
Memorable Scenes
- The 'Amok Run': The final sequence where Kazuma, surrounded by a sea of enemies, fights with a desperate, animalistic energy, using anything he can find as a weapon while the camera swirls around him in a dizzying blur.
Did You Know?
- The title 'Chōkon' is derived from a Chinese term meaning 'the grudge that one cannot forget' or 'eternal regret'.
- Director Daisuke Itō earned the nickname 'Idō Daisuki' (Loves Motion) because of the frenetic camera movement used in this film.
- The surviving 12-15 minute fragment is almost entirely composed of the film's climactic battle scene.
- Denjirō Ōkōchi, who plays Kazuma, became a superstar largely due to his performance in this film and subsequent collaborations with Itō.
- The film is considered a pioneer of the 'tendency film' (keiko-eiga) movement, which infused genre films with social and political critiques.
- The surviving fragment was digitally restored in 2010 by the National Film Center in Tokyo.
- In the final battle, the protagonist uses large wooden shields and is eventually brought down by a trip-cord, a scene praised for its visceral realism.
- The film's rapid-fire editing was revolutionary for 1920s Japanese cinema, influenced by European Impressionist techniques.
What Critics Said
At the time of its release, it was a sensation, winning the prestigious Kinema Junpo award and being hailed as a masterpiece of visual storytelling. Modern critics view the surviving fragment as a masterclass in silent film editing and cinematography, with film historian Hiroshi Komatsu noting that it displays 'virtually every element of the impressionist cinema.'
What Audiences Thought
The film was a massive commercial success, turning Denjirō Ōkōchi into a household name. Audiences were reportedly stunned by the speed of the action, which was unlike anything seen in Japanese theaters previously. The tragic, doomed nature of the hero resonated deeply with a public facing economic hardship and political transition.
Awards & Recognition
- Kinema Junpo Award for Best Film of the Year (1926)
Film Connections
Influenced By
- European Impressionist Cinema
- Soviet Montage Theory
- Japanese Proletarian Literature
This Film Influenced
- A Diary of Chuji's Travels (1927)
- Seven Samurai (1954)
- Harakiri (1962)
- The Sword of Doom (1966)
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Film Restoration
Fragmentary. Only 12-15 minutes of the original 6-reel film survive. This fragment was discovered in the 1990s and digitally restored in 2010.