Koyo, Hasebe and Maureen Donovan. Welcome to Kinema Club. Ohio State University. 15 January 2000. <http://pears.lib.ohiostate.edu/Markus/Welcome.html>.

This web site, in the words of its curators, is "devoted to the study of Japanese moving image media". It functions as a searchable database for Japanese film criticism from the 1950s to the present. Over 1500 resources have been indexed, and are navigable simply by using either the search option or by browsing the numerous categories of topics under which the entries are organized. While Koyo Hasebe and Maureen Donovan are ostensibly the authors of this web site sponsored mainly by Ohio State University, they welcome contributions from others. Of course, in a larger sense, they are not truly the authors, but instead organizers of the relevant writings in this field. The resources on this site are of an academic nature, and are intended for use in the scholarly research of the Japanese film industry. In some respects, this site is intended only for very serious or high-level research, indicated by the presence of directions to various bookstores in Tokyo which the less involved will almost assuredly find to be inaccessible.

The best feature of this site is the ease with which one may retrieve information. The methods of searching are all quite effective and can be adapted to either specific queries or simple browsing. However, the site also contains two significant weaknesses. First, bibliographic information presented in the search results is often incomplete, making the acquisition of these sources much more challenging. Second, the lack of actual information on the page can be somewhat frustrating. While the site may be ideal for the handful of high-level scholars who may use it, it has little to offer the more casual or less informed viewer. The inclusion of text detailing some of the major periods in Japanese cinema would make the site more relevant for the latter group.

-Dave Morrissey

Komatsu, Hiroshi. "Some Characteristics of Japanese Cinema Before World War I." in Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History. Ed. by Aurthur Noletti and Davud Desser. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1992. 229-258.

Komatsu's work, as the title implies, attempts to describe the forms that were dominant in Japanese filmmaking before the First World War and the factors inherent in Japanese society at the time that contributed to its development. He frequently emphasizes the differences that quickly emerged between the Japanese medium and its Western counterparts, as well as the similarities that eventually would emerge. Komatsu culls his information mainly from several scholarly books and articles, including three of his own previous works, as well as primary sources such as newspapers and advertisements ranging from 1899 until 1914. Komatsu, often characterized as a film historian, received a doctorate from the Graduate School of Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music and presently holds teaching positions at Meiji Gakuin University, Waseda University, Kokugakuin University, and Saitama University. These credentials as well as his manner of expression imply that this work is largely academic, and thus intended for a similarly inclined audience.

Komatsu's essay is well written and appears to be quite thorough. The inclusion of numerous examples to illustrate his points is a major strength, as are the conclusions that he draws regarding the nature of fluctuations or changes in the industry. If this essay has a weakness, it is that Komatsu at times does not sufficiently describe the social factors in Japan that facilitated the development of distinctly Japanese characteristics in the early cinema. The absence of this evidence is potentially frustrating for those who are not overly familiar with Japanese culture. It could also prove to be very interesting, and although he may have discussed such matters elsewhere, it certainly represents a missed opportunity. However, this work is ultimately quite useful and accessible for research on this topic.

-Dave Morrissey

Anderson, Joseph L. and Donald Richie. The Japanese Film: Art and Industry. Expanded edition. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1982.

This book is a fairly comprehensive study of the distinct periods in the development of the Japanese film industry from 1896 until 1959. The authors also devote separate sections to the examination of institutional factors present in Japan that affect the medium. The information contained in the text was culled from roughly two hundred sources, mainly Japanese, but including relevant Western works as well. Richie is considered both to be a film director as well as a critical scholar, and once served as the film curator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, while Anderson is a scholar who has at times been supported by the Japan Foundation. This text, largely a journalistic study, is of greatest use to those who desire a detailed overview of the development of this industry. The authors do not construct any particularly revolutionary ideas or arguments, and thus their work is of little value to serious academics.

The greatest strength of this book is its accessibility. A person who had little or no experience in this field could read this book and acquire a thorough knowledge of the Japanese film industry. The writing is lively and is quite effective in preventing the text from disintegrating into a tedious, glorified historical timeline. A large number of motion picture stills are also included, providing effective and interesting visual accompaniment to the text. A major weakness, however, which the authors themselves acknowledge, is the failure to include any significant commentary regarding the period between 1960 and the publication of this book in 1982. As a result, the information contained in The Japanese Film appears somewhat dated in spite of its continuously relevant take on its subject matter.

-Dave Morrissey

Davis, Darrell William. Picturing Japaneseness. New York: Columbia UP, 1996.

In this work, Davis considers certain aspects of the Japanese film industry, concerning himself mainly with the period beginning around World War II and continuing largely to the present. He focuses mainly on issues of culture and also on what he considers to be the "monumental style" of Japanese cinema in a series of short essays. Roughly two hundred and fifty sources are included in his study, composed mostly of Western criticism but also including some Japanese works. The author also makes extensive mention of specific Japanese films. Davis is a young academic who has worked and studied with a wide variety of institutions and organizations in recent years. The breadth of his experience, ranging from studies at the University of Wisconsin &emdash; Madison to a yearlong stint working with the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival give Davis a somewhat unique perspective on this topic. The tone of the work is largely academic, and would ultimately prove useful to either college students or high-level scholars for purposes of research.

One of the strengths of Davis' work is that he maintains a balance between the discussion of specific films and the overarching conditions in both Japanese cinematic history and society that inform this medium. His ideas, such as the consideration of nationalism in film, are generally intriguing and easily intelligible to those with even the most superficial grasp of the subject. Despite these positives, Picturing Japaneseness also contains a significant weakness in that there appears to be no unifying principle around which the book is organized. He addresses fairly disparate topics in Japanese film and evokes little or no connection between them. However, when viewed as parts instead of the larger whole, the essays remain both relevant and informative for a wide range of readers.

-Dave Morrissey