Giants and Toys

Giants and Toys (1958) Yasuzo Masumura

Giants and Toys centers around the advertising campaigns of three rival caramel companies in post-war Japan. The movie uses the same fantasy space as many Japanese post-war technology nightmares to frame a different kind of nightmare: that of post-war Japan's westernized consumer culture.

One of the companies recruits a toothless girl from the slums to be their new spokes model, another promises to provide for one contest winner's needs, "From cradle to wedding," and the third markets exotic silver caramels, with the help of a loin-clothed jungle man. Through it all, a traditional Japanese man battles with his drive towards success and financial stability and his desire to keep his dignity.

The movie was ahead of its time in terms of both style and content; Japanese cinema did not really take off until the late 70's, so I was surprised to see the date 1958 on a movie this sophisticated. This phenomenon came about for a number of reasons, but was essentially because film was a Western invention and it took some time for Japanese film makers to make it their own. When silent film was introduced in Japan in the 1930's, Japanese theaters employed Benshi to narrate the film, in the tradition of the kabuki theater. This live narration of movies was unique to Japan and added an element of performance, or theater, to the experience of watching the film. While this was a uniquely Japanese addition, it was not uniquely filmic, but instead confused the film medium with a method of creating reproducible and easily distributable theater. It was not until the 60's, when French new wave cinema began to develop a grammar and syntax for film as a communicative and expressive medium, that Japanese film makers began to understand cinema as a distinct medium.

That being said, this movie is cool looking, proficiently crafted, distinctly cinematic, and distinctly Japanese. It uses a playful, quasi-fantastic atmosphere and scenario to discuss a deadly serious subject: the effects of the introduction of elements of western culture on traditional Japanese values. If it helps you to understand how serious this really was at the time, imagine a movie about Americans adapting to Islamic cultural values after having one of our major cities nuked. Now imagine that movie being kooky and off-beat. This movie is both interesting on its own merit and as a cultural artifact: definitely recommended.

Availability: For rental through netflix and for sale at Amazon.com