A Page of Madness

A Page of Madness , Kurutta Ippji or Kurutta Ichipeiji? is a silent film by Japanese film director Teinosuke Kinugasa, made in 1926. It was lost for fortyfive years until being rediscovered by Kinugasa in his storehouse in 1971.42 The film is the product of an avantgarde group of artists in Japan known as the Shinkankakuha or School of New Perceptions who tried to overcome naturalistic representation.1259

The film takes place in an asylum. Although cut together in an ever maddening maelstrom, the film loosely tells the story of the janitor of the asylum. His wife is one of the patients. One day their daughter shows up at the asylum to tell her mother about her engagement. This sets off a number of subplots and flashbacks which stitch together the family history for instance, why the mother is a patient and why the daughter is unaware of her fathers job as a janitor.The film does not contain intertitles, making it difficult to follow. The print existing today is missing nearly a third of what was shown in theaters in 1926. Showings in 1920s Japan would have included live narration by a storyteller or benshi as well as musical accompaniment. The famous benshi Musei Tokugawa narrated the film at the Musashinokan theater in Shinjuku in Tokyo. 45 ........

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