About

Known credits:
43
Birthday:
1916-02-14
Place of birth:
Otaru, Hokkaidō, Japan
Website:
N/A

Masaki Kobayashi

Overview

Masaki Kobayashi (February 14, 1916–October 4, 1996) was a Japanese director.

Among his films is Kwaidan (1965), a collection of four ghost stories drawn from the book by Lafcadio Hearn, each of which has a surprise ending.

Kobayashi also directed The Human Condition, a trilogy on the effects of World War II on a Japanese pacifist and socialist. The total length of the films is over 9 hours. Other notable films include Harakiri (1962) and Samurai Rebellion (1967). Harakiri won him an award at the 1963 Cannes Film Festival, solidifying his place in the history of cinema.

In 1969, he was a member of the jury at the 19th Berlin International Film Festival.

He was also a candidate for directing the Japanese sequences for Tora! Tora! Tora!, once Akira Kurosawa left the film. But instead Kinji Fukasaku and Toshio Masuda were chosen.

Kobayashi, himself a pacifist, was drafted into the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, but refused to fight and refused promotion to a rank higher than private.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Masaki Kobayashi, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known for

Acting
1993 Masaki Kobayashi on 'The Human Condition' Actor Self N/A
N/A

Directing
1985 The Empty Table Directing Director 59
Average
1983 Tokyo Trial Directing Director 58
Average
1978 Glowing Autumn Directing Director N/A
N/A
1974 The Fossil Directing Director 59
Average
1971 Inn of Evil Directing Director 59
Average
1968 Hymn to a Tired Man Directing Director 59
Average
1967 Samurai Rebellion Directing Director 66
Fair
1965 Kwaidan Directing Director 66
Fair
1962 Harakiri Directing Director 75
Good
1962 The Inheritance Directing Director 59
Average
1961 The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer Directing Director 65
Fair
1959 The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity Directing Director 65
Fair
1959 The Human Condition I: No Greater Love Directing Director 66
Fair
1957 Black River Directing Director 59
Average
1956 I Will Buy You Directing Director 59
Average
1956 The Thick-Walled Room Directing Director 59
Average
1956 Fountainhead Directing Director 58
Average
1955 Beautiful Days Directing Director 59
Average
1954 Three Loves Directing Director 59
Average
1954 Somewhere Beneath the Wide Sky Directing Director 58
Average
1953 Sincere Heart Directing Director 59
Average
1952 Youth of the Son Directing Director 59
Average
1951 Carmen Comes Home Directing Assistant Director 59
Average
1949 Broken Drum Directing Assistant Director 59
Average
1949 Yotsuya Ghost Story Part 1 Directing Assistant Director 59
Average
1948 Apostasy Directing Assistant Director 59
Average
1948 The Portrait Directing Assistant Director 59
Average

Writing
2000 Dora-heita Writing Screenplay 58
Average
1985 The Empty Table Writing Screenplay 59
Average
1983 Tokyo Trial Writing Writer 58
Average
1961 The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer Writing Screenplay 65
Fair
1959 The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity Writing Screenplay 65
Fair
1959 The Human Condition I: No Greater Love Writing Screenplay 66
Fair
1954 Three Loves Writing Writer 59
Average
1949 Broken Drum Writing Screenplay 59
Average
1931 The Revenge Champion Writing Screenplay N/A
N/A

Production
2004 Final Approach Production Executive Producer 68
Fair
1970 Dodes'ka-den Production Executive Producer 61
Fair
1962 The Inheritance Production Producer 59
Average
1961 The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer Production Producer 65
Fair
1959 The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity Production Producer 65
Fair

Crew
1965 Tokyo Olympiad Crew Thanks 60
Fair