Night and Fog in Japan

Film Description

Oshima's most personal film is a reflection by the director on his own disillusionment with the revolutionary student movement of the 1950s and the failure of political radicalism.

Taking its title as from Resnais' pivotal documentary Night and Fog, the film has a group of former student revolutionaries who meet again years later at the wedding of one of their classmates. Old feeling, rivalries and grudges gradually erupt to the surface as the one-time friends recall the various treacheries by which their cause was defeated. Cutting between times past and present, and unfolding the action from each of his characters' viewpoints, Oshima presents a study of past passions and eroded principles.

Controversial upon release - the film's producers pulled the film from distribution after only a few days in cinemas - Night and Fog in Japan retains both its power to shock and its ability to engage the viewer in its radical form and themes.

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