"Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" Nagisa Oshima x David Bowie x Beat Takeshi x Ryuichi Sakamoto The path to the realization of a unique war movie, Part 2

"Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence"

September 4th, when the scene in which Yonoi gathers all the POWs at the parade ground, was filmed, the second week after filming began. In the evening, Oshima and Narushima had a relaxing meal with the production department at the only Chinese restaurant on the island, and there was a party hosted by Bowie at the hotel bar.The next day was a day off from filming, so it was a relaxing time. . This was also the day when the planes that come to the island arrive only three times a week. The person who landed on the island on that plane was K's missing wife. They tried to head to the island immediately after receiving the news, but due to lack of flights, they finally made it to Rarotonga on that day.

The search for her husband was carried out from September 4th to September 17th, with the island's police issuing a search request on Monday, as Saturdays and Sundays are public holidays. In fact, eight days during this period were spent on the search, and ``in addition to police officers, volunteer civilians, off-duty actors and staff, and the wives of foreign staff who accompanied the shootings cooperated. The search area has been expanded to include four neighboring uninhabited islands,'' (Rumour no Shinsou, April 1983 issue). However, the search, which involved around 50 people, ended in vain and no trace of K could be found. The missing person's case was widely covered in local newspapers, and it became a big topic of discussion considering the small island.

Meanwhile, filming was also in full swing, and the final scene, the final scene, was filmed in Hara's cell from the evening of September 10th. There is a space of about 6 tatami mats surrounded by a stone wall on the sandy beach. This set showcases the creativity of art director Toda. After the war, while preparing for the scene in which Lawrence visits Hara in his cell to say goodbye before his execution the next day, Takeshi offers to shave his head. A few days ago, Hara's lines in this scene were changed to English, and after undergoing special training for the past few days, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to, but since this is a scene where everything in this work is summarized, I didn't expect her to shave her head. I guess there was.

“Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence” ©Oshima Nagisa Productions

Filming continued until late at night, as there were 25 shots, which is unusual for a film with many long takes. As Lawrence prepares to leave after their final conversation, Hara yells, "Lawrence!" in a Japanese accent. Then Hara spoke her last words to Lawrence who turned around. This close-up, which fills the entire screen, is one of the most famous shots in the series, as it shows the face in an impressive way. When filming this cut, Oshima unusually repeated takes and asked Takeshi if he could make his voice louder. Then, with that screaming, tear-jerking look and voice that seemed to be a mixture of sadness, joy, and friendliness, the lines ``Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence'' were uttered on film. carved. Shooting ends at 2:35am.

Two days later, on the 13th, scene 97, where Hara takes the POWs to build an airfield, was Takeshi's last appearance. It was a large-scale shoot involving approximately 250 foreign extras, but it was completed successfully, and Takeshi continued on his way back to Japan. From August 28th to this day, Takeshi was on a strict schedule, so it was quite a forced march, but the time-consuming filming of the movie still gave Takeshi time to carefully observe Oshima's direction. It seems like it was.

Six years later, when he directed `` The Man Bessed '' (1989) under the name Takeshi Kitano, in an office scene, he instructed the art staff to remove more and more of the decorated interior furnishings from the screen, and finally the desk was removed. There was a time when I left only one thing and turned it into a completely empty space. The same thing happened at the scene of ``Sen Meri.'' This was during the filming of a scene in which Takeshi's lightheartedness stands out, when a drunk Hara playfully says, ``Laurence-san, Fazel, Christmas'' in the command room. Oshima removed many of the furniture placed on Yonoi's desk one after another, leaving only the inkstone box for the actual work. Takeshi, who was waiting until the shooting started, must have been watching this scene intently. The similarities between early Kitano films and Oshima's films have often been pointed out, as evidenced by the shared aesthetic sensibility of these films.

Famous shots created by equipment accidents