CRUEL STORY OF YOUTH (1960)
aka Naked Youth

青春残酷物語

dir: Nagisa Oshima

Shochiku (Ofuna Studio)

June 3, 1960

96 minutes Shochiku Grand Scope

Miyuki Kuwano as Makoto Shinjo

Yusuke Kawazu as Kiyoshi Fujii

Yoshiko Kuga as Yuki Shinjo (sister)

Director Nagisa Oshima was Shochiku Studios answer to the 'sun tribe' youth movement movies in Japan, and Oshima would go on to continued success and controversy (In the Realm of the Senses, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence). This was his second movie, and first in full color.

A highly influential movie, It's the story of two young lovers, growing up in a different Japan. Quick money rackets, back room abortions, older women paying younger men for sex - this is the back street tough life we'd come to see play a larger part in the movies. 

The beautiful Miyuki Kuwano, plays a girl from the good side of the tracks who hitches a ride home one night from an older man who tries to take advantage of her. In steps attractive bad boy Yûsuke Kawazu, who beats the guy up, saves her and begins a whirwind romance, where they use that same set up - she meets an older man to get a ride from - to extort money from those men.

Set amongst the youth protests, the underworld bad guys, and the clash of a new generation, it hits the ground running and never lets up. Once again, it's hard to tell if it's message is slanted because no one seems to be getting life right - just doing what they can to make certain moments worth it.