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IMDbPro

Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters

  • 19851985
  • RR
  • 2h
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
11K
YOUR RATING
Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
Watch ’Trailer’
Play trailer1:24
1 Video
99+ Photos
  • Biography
  • Drama
A fictionalized account in four chapters of the life of celebrated Japanese writer Yukio Mishima.A fictionalized account in four chapters of the life of celebrated Japanese writer Yukio Mishima.A fictionalized account in four chapters of the life of celebrated Japanese writer Yukio Mishima.
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
11K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Paul Schrader
  • Writers
    • Paul Schrader
    • Leonard Schrader
    • Yukio Mishima(novels: "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion", "Kyoko's House" and "Runaway Horses)
  • Stars
    • Ken Ogata
    • Masayuki Shionoya
    • Hiroshi Mikami
Top credits
  • Director
    • Paul Schrader
  • Writers
    • Paul Schrader
    • Leonard Schrader
    • Yukio Mishima(novels: "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion", "Kyoko's House" and "Runaway Horses)
  • Stars
    • Ken Ogata
    • Masayuki Shionoya
    • Hiroshi Mikami
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 45User reviews
    • 84Critic reviews
    • 81Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:24
    Trailer

    Photos137

    Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Junya Fukuda, Hiroshi Mikami, Ken Ogata, Junkichi Orimoto, Masayuki Shionoya, and Shigeto Tachihara in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ken Ogata in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
    Ryô Ikebe and Toshiyuki Nagashima in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ken Ogata
    Ken Ogata
    • Yukio Mishima (segment "November 25, 1970")as Yukio Mishima (segment "November 25, 1970")…
    Masayuki Shionoya
    Masayuki Shionoya
    • Morita (segment "November 25, 1970")as Morita (segment "November 25, 1970")
    Hiroshi Mikami
    Hiroshi Mikami
    • Cadet #1 (segment "November 25, 1970")as Cadet #1 (segment "November 25, 1970")
    Junya Fukuda
    • Cadet #2 (segment "November 25, 1970")as Cadet #2 (segment "November 25, 1970")
    Shigeto Tachihara
    • Cadet #3 (segment "November 25, 1970")as Cadet #3 (segment "November 25, 1970")
    Junkichi Orimoto
    • General Mashita (segment "November 25, 1970")as General Mashita (segment "November 25, 1970")
    Naoko Ôtani
    Naoko Ôtani
    • Mother (segment "Flashbacks")as Mother (segment "Flashbacks")
    Gô Rijû
    • Mishima, age 18-19 (segment "Flashbacks")as Mishima, age 18-19 (segment "Flashbacks")
    Masato Aizawa
    Masato Aizawa
    • Mishima - age 9-14 (segment "Flashbacks")as Mishima - age 9-14 (segment "Flashbacks")
    Yuki Nagahara
    Yuki Nagahara
    • Mishima, age 5 (segment "Flashbacks")as Mishima, age 5 (segment "Flashbacks")
    Kyûzô Kobayashi
    • Literary Friend (segment "Flashbacks")as Literary Friend (segment "Flashbacks")
    Yuki Kitazume
    • Dancing Friend (segment "Flashbacks")as Dancing Friend (segment "Flashbacks")
    Haruko Katô
    Haruko Katô
    • Grandmother (segment "Flashbacks")as Grandmother (segment "Flashbacks")
    Yasosuke Bando
    Yasosuke Bando
    • Mizoguchi (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")as Mizoguchi (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")
    Hisako Manda
    • Mariko (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")as Mariko (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")
    Naomi Oki
    • First Girl (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")as First Girl (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")
    Miki Takakura
    • Second Girl (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")as Second Girl (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")
    Imari Tsujikoichi Sato
    • Madame (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")as Madame (segment "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion")
    • (as Imari Tsuji)
    • Director
      • Paul Schrader
    • Writers
      • Paul Schrader
      • Leonard Schrader
      • Yukio Mishima(novels: "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion", "Kyoko's House" and "Runaway Horses) (uncredited)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Has never been officially released theatrically or on home video in Japan even to this day (2019) because of the controversy over both Yukio Mishima's politics, and the film itself. A theatrical release was planned for Japan in 1985, but a bomb threat at a festival screening of the film there made distributors drop their plans. The film has been shown on Japanese television (albeit with the gay bar scene removed) and the U.S. DVD and Blu-Ray releases can legally be imported there.
    • Goofs
      Mishima didn't exaggerate his illness. He was declared unfit for military service because of an inexperienced Army physician's misdiagnosis.
    • Quotes

      Yukio Mishima (Narrator): The average age for a man in the Bronze Age was eighteen, in the Roman era, twenty-two. Heaven must have been beautiful then. Today it must look dreadful. When a man reaches forty, he has no chance to die beautifully. No matter how he tries, he will die of decay. He must compel himself to live.

    • Crazy credits
      Yukio Mishima is acknowledged to have been a real person, but his acts have been fictionalized by writers. Other persons and events in this film are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons and events is unintentional.
    • Alternate versions
      On Japanese television, the gay bar scene is cut out.
    • Connections
      Featured in Mardi cinéma: Episode dated 14 May 1985 (1985)

    User reviews45

    Review
    Top review
    Harmony of Pen and Sword
    The film, original and hypnotizing depicting of the fascinating Artist's life through his writings, works, especially in the first two chapters, "Beauty" and "Art". They are nothing short of perfection if you ask me. Amazing blend of three different styles - quasi documentary of the last day in his life, black-and-white flashbacks of his earlier days and exiting and stylish color sequences of his novels "The Temple of Golden Pavilion" and "Kyoko's House" helps to understand the constant and tragic search of Mishima's protagonists for beauty and for meaning of art. Two last chapters, "Action" and "Harmony of Pen and Sword" seem weaker than the first two. Two hours are not enough to explore the figure of such complexity but the attempt is very interesting and adds to my interest in Mishima - a great writer, actor, director, a military man, a man who felt that he knew where the future of his country lied and who did not hesitate a second to die for his ideas.

    7.5/10
    helpful•13
    3
    • Galina_movie_fan
    • Apr 24, 2006

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 20, 1985 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • Japan
    • Languages
      • Japanese
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Mishima
    • Filming locations
      • Japan
    • Production companies
      • Zoetrope Studios
      • Filmlink International
      • Lucasfilm
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $5,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $437,547
    • Gross worldwide
      • $569,996
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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