Borrow it
Coverart for item
The Resource Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo : Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952, Kyoko Hirano

Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo : Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952, Kyoko Hirano

Creator
Summary
"In Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo, Kyoko Hirano examines American censorship of Japanese cinema during the occupation of 1945-1952, exposing how the occupation government effectively used the Japanese film industry to serve its own ends: to inculcate "democratic" principles, to guard against a return to militarism, and, ultimately, to create a trustworthy ally in the Pacific." "The first history of Japanese cinema under the American occupation, Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo makes extensive use of declassified occupation-government documents from Washington and Tokyo, censored screenplays, several hundred films, and interviews with Japanese directors, producers, and writers. Through an analysis of such classics as Akira Kurosawa's No Regrets for Our Youth (1946), long considered a standard in the "democratization film" genre, Hirano reveals that American authorities approved of films that featured baseball, American-style comedy, gunfights, kissing scenes, and Japanese men and women resisting fascism. She addresses prohibited topics - ritual suicide, gambling, depictions of Mt. Fuji, and, above all, criticism of the United States - in discussions of such censored films as The Japanese Tragedy (1946) and Desertion at Dawn (1950)." "Hirano traces the history of occupation censorship from its beginnings, when the United States became the almost sole Allied occupying force under General Douglas MacArthur (who wished to make Japan the "Switzerland of Asia"), to its conclusion, with the signing of a bilateral defense treaty. The author distinguishes between an early, more liberal period of occupation, in which many of Japan's own repressive restrictions on political expression were lifted, and a longer regressive period, in which growing antilabor policies of the Cold War era sparked labor unrest in the Japanese film industry."
Language
eng
Work
Publication
Extent
xvii, 365 pages
Contents
  • American Preparation for the Occupation Film Policy.
  • Japanese Film at the End of the War.
  • The Dual Structure of Occupation Media Policy.
  • Film Policy.
  • The Banned Films.
  • Prohibited Subjects
  • 2.
  • Prohibited Subjects.
  • Militarism, Wartime Activities, and War Crimes.
  • Criticism of the Occupation.
  • Introduction.
  • The Atomic Bomb.
  • Period Films.
  • Attitudes toward Women and Children.
  • Antisocial Behavior.
  • Xenophobia.
  • Religion.
  • Other Subjects.
  • The Case of Desertion at Dawn.
  • The Receptiveness of Japanese Filmmakers
  • The American Occupation of Japan: Historical Background.
  • Occupation Film Policy.
  • Occupation Scholarship: A Review.
  • Goals and Structure of This Volume
  • 1.
  • From War to Occupation.
  • Japanese Prewar and Wartime Censorship.
Isbn
9781560981572
Instance
Label
Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo : Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952
Title
Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo
Title remainder
Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952
Statement of responsibility
Kyoko Hirano
Creator
Subject
Genre
Language
eng
Summary
"In Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo, Kyoko Hirano examines American censorship of Japanese cinema during the occupation of 1945-1952, exposing how the occupation government effectively used the Japanese film industry to serve its own ends: to inculcate "democratic" principles, to guard against a return to militarism, and, ultimately, to create a trustworthy ally in the Pacific." "The first history of Japanese cinema under the American occupation, Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo makes extensive use of declassified occupation-government documents from Washington and Tokyo, censored screenplays, several hundred films, and interviews with Japanese directors, producers, and writers. Through an analysis of such classics as Akira Kurosawa's No Regrets for Our Youth (1946), long considered a standard in the "democratization film" genre, Hirano reveals that American authorities approved of films that featured baseball, American-style comedy, gunfights, kissing scenes, and Japanese men and women resisting fascism. She addresses prohibited topics - ritual suicide, gambling, depictions of Mt. Fuji, and, above all, criticism of the United States - in discussions of such censored films as The Japanese Tragedy (1946) and Desertion at Dawn (1950)." "Hirano traces the history of occupation censorship from its beginnings, when the United States became the almost sole Allied occupying force under General Douglas MacArthur (who wished to make Japan the "Switzerland of Asia"), to its conclusion, with the signing of a bilateral defense treaty. The author distinguishes between an early, more liberal period of occupation, in which many of Japan's own repressive restrictions on political expression were lifted, and a longer regressive period, in which growing antilabor policies of the Cold War era sparked labor unrest in the Japanese film industry."
Cataloging source
DLC
http://library.link/vocab/creatorName
Hirano, Kyōko
Dewey number
791.43/0952/09044
Government publication
federal national government publication
Illustrations
illustrations
Index
index present
LC call number
PN1993.5.J3
LC item number
H57 1992
Literary form
non fiction
Nature of contents
bibliography
http://library.link/vocab/subjectName
  • Motion pictures
  • Motion picture industry
  • Motion pictures
  • Filmkeuring
  • Bezettingsmachten
Label
Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo : Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952, Kyoko Hirano
Instantiates
Publication
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 321-341) and indexes
Carrier category
volume
Carrier category code
  • nc
Carrier MARC source
rdacarrier
Content category
text
Content type code
  • txt
Content type MARC source
rdacontent
Contents
  • American Preparation for the Occupation Film Policy.
  • Japanese Film at the End of the War.
  • The Dual Structure of Occupation Media Policy.
  • Film Policy.
  • The Banned Films.
  • Prohibited Subjects
  • 2.
  • Prohibited Subjects.
  • Militarism, Wartime Activities, and War Crimes.
  • Criticism of the Occupation.
  • Introduction.
  • The Atomic Bomb.
  • Period Films.
  • Attitudes toward Women and Children.
  • Antisocial Behavior.
  • Xenophobia.
  • Religion.
  • Other Subjects.
  • The Case of Desertion at Dawn.
  • The Receptiveness of Japanese Filmmakers
  • The American Occupation of Japan: Historical Background.
  • Occupation Film Policy.
  • Occupation Scholarship: A Review.
  • Goals and Structure of This Volume
  • 1.
  • From War to Occupation.
  • Japanese Prewar and Wartime Censorship.
Control code
25367560
Dimensions
24 cm
Extent
xvii, 365 pages
Isbn
9781560981572
Lccn
92007033
Media category
unmediated
Media MARC source
rdamedia
Media type code
  • n
Other physical details
illustrations
System control number
(WaOLN)1478861
Label
Mr. Smith goes to Tokyo : Japanese cinema under the American occupation, 1945-1952, Kyoko Hirano
Publication
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 321-341) and indexes
Carrier category
volume
Carrier category code
  • nc
Carrier MARC source
rdacarrier
Content category
text
Content type code
  • txt
Content type MARC source
rdacontent
Contents
  • American Preparation for the Occupation Film Policy.
  • Japanese Film at the End of the War.
  • The Dual Structure of Occupation Media Policy.
  • Film Policy.
  • The Banned Films.
  • Prohibited Subjects
  • 2.
  • Prohibited Subjects.
  • Militarism, Wartime Activities, and War Crimes.
  • Criticism of the Occupation.
  • Introduction.
  • The Atomic Bomb.
  • Period Films.
  • Attitudes toward Women and Children.
  • Antisocial Behavior.
  • Xenophobia.
  • Religion.
  • Other Subjects.
  • The Case of Desertion at Dawn.
  • The Receptiveness of Japanese Filmmakers
  • The American Occupation of Japan: Historical Background.
  • Occupation Film Policy.
  • Occupation Scholarship: A Review.
  • Goals and Structure of This Volume
  • 1.
  • From War to Occupation.
  • Japanese Prewar and Wartime Censorship.
Control code
25367560
Dimensions
24 cm
Extent
xvii, 365 pages
Isbn
9781560981572
Lccn
92007033
Media category
unmediated
Media MARC source
rdamedia
Media type code
  • n
Other physical details
illustrations
System control number
(WaOLN)1478861

Subject

Genre

Library Locations

    • Ellis LibraryBorrow it
      1020 Lowry Street, Columbia, MO, 65201, US
      38.944491 -92.326012

Library Links

Structured data from the Bibframe namespace is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License by University of Missouri Libraries. Additional terms may apply to data associated with third party namespaces.
Processing Feedback ...