Eros Plus Massacre by Yoshishige Yoshida Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Eros Plus Massacre by Yoshishige Yoshida - Essay Example As a breakthrough from an orthodox filming tradition during the 60s, Yoshida utilized a technique of combining the intricacies of history and art in a craft which exposes the nature of sexuality in its portrayal of the central purpose in designating characters according to gender traits. For one to analyze the film fully, one needs to examine how it had been created by the New Wave movement in the light of blending formal with political radicalism. Essentially, if the concept of formal radicalism must be present in visual arts as in film, it would be expected to project the opposite of an ‘embodiment’ which otherwise serves as the typical function of an art piece. In â€Å"Eros Plus Massacre†, the art as it occurs in the perception of the audience seems to be formally radical as it shapes itself into the form that could be understood rather less figuratively for the lack of conspicuous representation. While the film may be observed with components that require a v iewer to invest in depth of psychological insight, the analogies between the past and the present thematic characters make no representative meaning of each other yet they bear reflexivity to an extent that the art communicates back to itself in the attempt to allow comprehension of its main thrust. To fulfil the objective of a formally radical work, hence, director Yoshida brings the fragmented narrative technique to proceed as shooting of alternate sequences in which the life of Eiko, being a liberated young woman with a circle of lovers in contemporary period, is patterned after the life of Sakae Osugi, an anarchical male figure who, during his conservative time, is known for his philosophy on absolute freedom when it comes to love and sex relations. In a conventional approach, Eiko could have portrayed a more natural role where, instead of knowing about Osugi, she could be made to resemble his lifestyle as an independent entity whose kind or composition embodies that of him. Thi s, however, is not the case since the formal radicalization of the narrative conveys both lives as intertwined for Eiko assumes the position of a researcher in pursuit of studies regarding Osugi’s socio-political principles and way of living. So, in this manner, her quest of identity based on a strong character of the past renders for her a sense of ‘self-awareness’ at the time being. The viewers are hereafter bent to realize that the personal exploration of Eiko depends not solely on the pure nature she is in the absence of external influence, but on her constant social relations and passionate interest on learning from the lives of Osugi and Noe Ito. Apparently, in Yoshida’s filming process, â€Å"Eros Plus Massacre† leads the audience to understand that the theme of the motion picture becomes increasingly attached to the knowledge of the character in dramatic view which then makes the film ‘self-aware’ as it shifts the sight and feel of viewers between private and social dimensions. One such stimulating scene in which this has materialized is when Eiko, in focus, touches herself in the shower and the tracking shot from top to bottom of her glass-covered wet body mobilizes her erotic imagination through a couple of supposedly invisible male hands in fondling motion as though they were actually upon her skin. As a critical viewer during the film watch, I have