CRUEL STORY OF YOUTH (SEISHUN ZANKOKU MONOGATARI) Classic Film Retrospective

Japan’s own REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, this film tells the story of two young lovers and their fight against the world of 1960 Japan. This internationally and critically-acclaimed film made a daring statement about the disillusionment that took place in Japan following World War II, from a director considered by many film scholars and critics as one of Japan’s greatest exports. Indeed, Mr. Oshima is considered to be the most influential filmmaker of post-war Japanese New Wave cinema, as well as one of the most innovative and talented film artists today.

The film centers on a teenage girl and her criminal boyfriend, who perform sexual shakedowns on well-to-do middle-aged men. CRUEL STORY was Oshima’s first commercial hit as well as the beginning of his first storm of controversy. Among his later films is IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES ( 197 6), a brilliant and notorious work that is considered shocking even by today’s standards.