Pale Flower (1964): Japanese Film Noir (Film Discussion)
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"Why can’t all film noirs be like Pale Flower?" (Ashim Ahluwalia, Indian director)
""Pale Flower" (directed by Masahiro Shinoda) is one of the most haunting noirs I've seen, and something more; in 1964 it was an important work in an emerging Japanese New Wave of independent filmmakers, an exercise in existential cool. It involves a plot, but it is all about attitude. Muraki, elegantly dressed, his hair in a carefully stylized cut, his eyes often shielded by dark glasses, speaking rarely, revealing nothing, guards his emotions as if there may be no more where they came from. He glides through nights and an underworld of high-stakes gambling clubs and hooker bars, but lives in a rude and shabby room as if it is merely a cave for sleeping." (Ebert)
"An unforgettable excursion into the underworld." (Criterion)
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Please watch the movie in advance here.
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We all seek meaning in our lives and dread futility. Philosophy doesn't provide facile answers, but the philosophical quest to make sense of our fleeting lives is one that we all share.
This group explores answers by discussing not only philosophical writing, but also literature and film.