‘MISHIMA’ MAY BE SHOWN IN TOKYO FILM FESTIVAL
“Mishima,” the controversial Zoetrope Studios release about author Yukio Mishima, who committed a ritual suicide in 1970, may yet be featured during the first Tokyo International Film Festival, which opens May 30.
Festival officials gave the film an 11th-hour screening Thursday, after months of quarreling with the film’s producers. Kyushiro Kusakabe, program director for the festival, said the screening committee will decide Monday whether “Mishima,” a joint U.S.-Japan production, will be shown.
Tom Luddy and Mataichiro Yamamoto, the movie’s co-producers, have charged that the festival’s organizers rejected the film because of fears that Japanese rightists, some of whom regard Mishima as a hero, would cause trouble. Kusakabe and other festival officials denied the charge, however, countering that the film’s producers had never made a print of the film available for screening.
Luddy will premiere “Mishima” for the Cannes Festival on Wednesday. It is scheduled for release throughout Europe the following week.
Only good movies
Get the Indie Focus newsletter, Mark Olsen's weekly guide to the world of cinema.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
