Early Shinoda

Early Shinoda

Criterion is sitting on a few tasty titles from Masahiro Shinoda’s early work, including a film with my favorite sweetheart, Mariko Kaga.  Criterion seems to love Shinoda, so I hope an Eclipse set is in the works.  For those of you who live Stateside, you can check out all of these titles on Crition’s Hulu channel.  These four films provide a nice cross section of Shinoda’s style and sensibilities.  If you like Shinoda’s experimentalism, I highly recommend Youth in Fury (or Dry Lake as it should be known) and Killers on Parade.  If you lean towards traditional story-telling, Our Marriage and A Flame at the Pier is sure to please.  Either way, if you enjoyed Shinoda’s Double Suicide and Pale Flower, these films show the beginnings of a confident, rebellious, and softhearted director.