Kyo Machiko - Lights and Shadows of the Showa Era as Reflected by an International Actress (1924-2019)

Kyo Machiko - Lights and Shadows of the Showa Era as Reflected by an International Actress (1924-2019)

Kyo Machiko was a major actress in the golden age of postwar Japanese cinema, leaving a strong impression both in Japan and abroad with her appearance and acting ability. In 1950, she won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival for Akira Kurosawa's "Rashomon," and was a key figure in bringing international recognition to Japanese cinema. She continued to play the role of a demonic woman who plays with men in such films as Kenji Mizoguchi's "Red-light District," Yuzo Kawashima's "The Butterflies of the Night," and Kozaburo Yoshimura's "False Arrangements," symbolizing the moral turmoil of the postwar era. On the other hand, in Yasujiro Ozu's "Ukigusa" and Kon Ichikawa's "Nuptials," he gave excellent performances as enduring wives and tolerant women that drew deep sympathy from the audience. As the Japanese film industry rushed to expand overseas, Kyo left a strong impression on international audiences by presenting a fleshy and raw image of human beings, in c
ontrast to Setsuko Hara, who represented the era with her chaste idealism, and Hideko Takamine, who represented it with her popular intelligence. Kyo is said to have struggled with the gap between her inner life and the roles she played, but she was able to sublimate even this struggle into her acting, and she has done a great deal to elevate Japanese cinema from entertainment to an art form. As a symbol of the internationalization of postwar Japan, Kyo Machiko still shines brilliantly in the history of film.