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 Oshima Nagisa (Kyoto, )
Born in Kyoto and a graduate of Kyoto University, Oshima was a
leader of the leftist, Shochiku New Wave of young directors who
were inspired by French cinema in the 1960's. He has for many
years been a strong supporter of the freedom of expression and
a critic of the commercialism of Hollywood and Japanese cinema.
In Japan, his most popular film was Night and Fog in Japan (Nihon no Yoru to Kiri, 1960), a critical look at the left-wing
in Japan. He is best known abroad for three films: the controversial
French-produced In the Realm of the Senses (Ai no Korida, 1976), a study of sexual obsession based on a
true story; its 1978 sequel Empire of Passion (Ai no Borei), which won the best director award at Cannes and
1983's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, a joint Japanese-British production. The next decade saw the
release of Max, Mon Amour with an all-European cast, and Oshima doing more work in Japan,
including two films and regular appearances on TV variety shows.
Following a stroke in 1996, Oshima cut back his workload drastically.
His latest film, Gohatto, appeared in the Venice Film Festival in 1999.
 Sakamoto Ryuichi and David Bowie in a scene from Merry Christmas,
Mr. Lawrence which also starred Tom Conti and the up-coming Kitano
Takeshi. The film was based on the novel The Seed and the Sower
by Laurence Van Der Post and the music was composed by Sakamoto.
It is the story of two British officers in a Japanese POW camp
and the complex relationships that develop between them and their
gaolers. The prisoner's battle for survival becomes a battle of
contrasting philosophies and willpower as the Japanese try to
break their spirit.
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