Seijun Suzuki (鈴木 清順, Suzuki Seijun; born 24 May, 1923 in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese film director. Working for the Nikkatsu studio, he made over 40 B-movies (known in Japan as 'program pictures') between 1956 and 1967.
Suzuki's style grew more eccentric over time, particularly from 1963 onwards, and his most famous works – including the yakuza thrillers Tokyo Drifter (1966) and Branded to Kill (1967) – are known for their surrealistic irreverence. After Branded to Kill, however, Nikkatsu President Kyusaku Hori fired him for "making films that didn't make any sense and didn't make any money." Despite the support of younger directors and successfully suing the studio over his dismissal, Suzuki was effectively blacklisted from making films in Japan for the next ten years.
Suzuki later directed Yumeji (1991), and recently remade/parodied Branded to Kill as Pistol Opera (2001), with Makiko Esumi replacing Jo Shishido as the number 3 killer. In 2005, he directed Princess Raccoon, a musical love story.
Selected filmography
- 2005 Princess Raccoon (オペレッタ狸御殿 Operetta Tanuki Goten) - director
- 2001 Pistol Opera (ピストルオペラ Pisutoru opera) - director
- 1995 Cold Fever - actor
- 1991 Yumeji (夢二) - director
- 1985 Lupin III: The Golden Legend of Babylon (ルパン三世 バビロンの黄金伝説 Rupan sansei: Babiron no ogon densetsu) - director (as Kiyoshi Suzuki)
- 1981 Zigeunerweisen (ツィゴイネルワイゼン Tsigoineruwaizen) - director
- 1981 Kagero-za (陽炎座) - director
- 1977 A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness (悲愁物語 Hishu monogatari) - director
- 1967 Branded to Kill (殺しの烙印 Koroshi no rakuin) - director
- 1966 Fighting Elegy (けんかえれじい Kenka erejī) - director
- 1966 Tokyo Drifter (東京流れ者 Tōkyō nagaremono) - director
- 1965 Tattooed Life (刺青一代 Irezumi ichidai) - director
- 1965 Story of a Prostitute (春婦伝 Shunpu den) - director
- 1964 Gate of Flesh (肉体の門 Nikutai no mon) - director
- 1963 Kanto Wanderer (関東無宿 Kantō mushuku) - director
- 1963 Youth of the Beast (野獣の青春 Yaju no seishun) - director
- 1963 Detective Bureau 2-3: Go to Hell Bastards (探偵事務所２３ 銭と女に弱い男 Tantei jimusho 23: Kutabare akuto-domo) - director
- 1958 Underworld Beauty (暗黒街の美女 Ankokugai no Bijo) - director
Further reading
- Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp (2004). The Midnight Eye Guide to New Japanese Film. Stone Bridge Press. ISBN 1-880656-89-2.
External links
- 45. Caliber Samurai - Tribute site
- Seijun Suzuki: Authority in Minority at sense of cinema
- Midnight Eye interview: Seijun Suzuki
- Seijun Suzuki at IMDb
- Template:Amg name
- Seijun Suzuki at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)
 | This biographical article related to film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This biographical article related to Japan is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |