‘Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence’ Director Nagisa Oshima Dies

Legendary Japanese filmmaker Nagisa Oshima has passed away at the age of 80. The man responsible for directing such treats as MERRY CHRISTMAS MR. LAWRENCE and EMPIRE OF PASSION died of pneumonia on the afternoon of 15th of January 2013. Oshima hadn’t directed a film since 1999’s controversial TABOO which looked at homosexual relationships within the samurai classes, as he suffered a stroke 1996 and never fully recovered.

He shot to fame in the 1970s for his controversial classic IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES, a film that bravely mixed sexuality and violence. Never one to shy away from controversy, Oshima once stated:

My hatred for Japanese cinema includes absolutely all of it.

No surprise then that his films would always receive mixed reactions and stray far from what would be considered the norm. Arguably his biggest achievement was MERRY CHRISTMAS MR. LAWRENCE, a film that saw David Bowie as a a POW. The film had memorable performances from Bowie, Takeshi Kitano, Tom Conti, and Ryuchi Sakamoto, who also composed the truly unforgettable score.

A regular on Japanese talk shows where he would often debate on difficult topics, Japanese talkshow host Soichiro Tahara tweeted this:

I was scared of him but he was also like a very supportive brother. He taught me many things, scolded me and yelled at me. But his words were always affectionate. Mr. Oshima did not care about taboo or compliance, not even a bit. He said what he wanted to say, what he had to say. It’s hard to find a person like him anymore.

Even though he has been absent from film making for over a decade, Nagisa Oshima is a talent that will be sorely missed. We can only hope that filmmakers that are just as challenging and not afraid of controversy will continue to rear their heads on the international stage.