Miki Sugimoto

Transcription

Onsen Mimizu Geisha was the first film I'd made of this nature. We'd discovered an actress named Reiko lke. And since she was so promising... they told me to keep churning out more films for her. The word sukeban (girl boss)... was something my assistant picked up on the street. He said it was the slang word of the day. So when I heard that word, I asked the studio if I could use it... but they told me to go with Queen Bee. So I thought up a subtitle... Sukeban Blues... and stuck it on. I was planning to include a song by that name in the movie. And we ended up not needing the main title, Queen Bee anymore... Because now they were telling me, "Just go with Sukeban!" At first, I was skeptical. Were we really going with a title like that? But that's how we ended up calling the series Sukeban. When I started out as a director, the yakuza film boom had just begun. Usually, the main feature would be a yakuza film. Still, you have to rememberthat those yakuza films... had certain antisocial, or should I say immoral, undertones... After all, they were about social misfits. And so the other feature had to have some of that aspect, too... those anti-hero qualities. Our options were either comedy or porn. The film with either of those qualities was easier on the audience. See, it was like the prize in a Glico caramel box! Oh, wait, you wouldn't know what I mean by that. A freebie. That's why... The thing is... It couldn't just be another yakuza film. The audience wouldn't like that. So the second feature was always an erotic film, an erotic comedy. Or we'd have a lot of dissatisfied Toei fans to answer to. Because they were the general public. Seduction. I picked them up. We spotted these girls in a bar... and summoned them over. I told them I was a movie producer. And my main target was lke... but I thought we might as well nab the girl next to her, too. I asked if they wanted to become actresses, and they just said yes. There was nothing to it, really. She was only 16? That's right, at the time lke was only 16. Not that I had any idea. I found out later and was stunned. I told her, "Make sure you never tell anyone! Just say you're 18!" Sneaking into my turf while I was gone, acting like you're the boss... You've got a lot of nerve. If you want to rule Umeda, you'll have to defeat the sukeban, me, first. Sure, I'll take you on. Come on! Sugimoto was really fortunate in that sense, Looking back now. Because when lke left Toei, it was Sugimoto who became the star. It happened that way because lke left the studio... and so with her gone... well, Sandra Julien was coming over from France. Sandra Julien was going to appear in the films, so we gave Sugimoto the lead role. We knew she'd do a good job. Boss! Pretty please! Please, we beg of you... Fine. But as long as you're under me, it's my way or the highway. So we did a film starring Sugimoto. I think it was Suppon Geisha. And then when lke decided to come back... Well, it wouldn't have been fair to just drop Sugimoto for lke, would it? That's why lke always played... Since she was a boomerang employee...well, maybe that's not the word! But that's why lke got the supporting roles. Then the producers told me to make lke vehicles and Sugimoto vehicles. He said to just keep cranking them out since there was a big demand. So we decided to take these two actresses, lke and Sugimoto, and have them star in Toei program pictures. And that's what happened. They said they didn't care what else I did. As long as those two were in the films. Did they practice? No, they didn't get a lot of practice in! It was all written into the script, remember. They pretty much did whatever I told them to without complaining. That was theirjob, after all. Even if they were reluctant, and there were times when they were... all I had to do was go on and roll the camera anyway. But see, I always told them beforehand, this is what's going to happen. And I also told them they were sure to become famous. That was something I drove home to them over and over. They really didn't have a problem with it. When we first started making these fims, one thing we did... ...was satirize the era we were living in. But then...we needed some kind of rebellion. It was a drama, so we wanted to have something to rebel against. And so... There were men who used women as their livelihood. There were quite a few of them back then. And more often than not, they were yakuza. So we showed people standing up to these yakuza, more and more. And these men who preyed on women were the target of these attacks. In the later films, we depicted that more graphically. Just look at them now... Men are pretty damn useless, huh? Well, it's a combination of both, I think. But entertainment, see... if you look back at its history in Japan... ...it's been anti-authoritarian, antiestablishment since the Edo Period. That's precisely what thrills the audience. You've got to have that element somewhere. The reason why the general public seeks out stories of revolution is because they're searching for some kind of catharsis. They're looking for an escape from oppression, see... Well, it's a form of rebellion. And as forthe antiestablishment theme... Well, that's what the audience is seeking. Of course, it was different with Shochiku audiences. But with us... Toei audiences... They wanted anti-authoritarian movies, no question. That was a given. Because... The reason why I feel so strongly about these films... ...about mass entertainment... is because the real world is no fun for us... and I want to toss a rock at authority. But listen, my films aren't exactly masterpieces... Half the time, they're nothing but pure fun. Amusement! Those assistant directors claimed that movies shouldn't be freak shows. That's why they were protesting. But I always felt that my films were freak shows. I was fine with that. My films were nowhere near as hardcore as Ishii's were... After all, I was just making erotic comedies, nothing more. I just told them not to be so narrow-minded. And that was that, I think. Even so, there were a few assistant directors... ...who felt that it wasn't right to just censure Teruo Ishii and not me. I hear there were a few who felt that way. European culture... As far as music, religious music goes... As well as paintings... Most of the masterworks come from Europe. So in that sense, you were just seeing my personal taste. My personal taste, seeping into my films... that's all. And Japan has such a motley culture, you know. We get a lot of American influences, and European influences... Then there's also the Chinese influence... So the thing is, if I had to choose, I liked Europe better... Better than the U.S. Though I did see a lot of U.S. Films, because I liked Hollywood movies. So I guess I might have been influenced by U.S. Films as well. But in terms of sheer expressiveness... those painting-like visuals... I do think I was strongly influenced by European culture. The architecture, the paintings, the art... the music. Now that I think about it... I've seen a lot of male rebels in U.S. Films. Like in Boryoku Kyoushitsu... The Blackboard Jungle. And Rebel Without a Cause. With James Dean. But there were no female rebel films. A film about a woman who... A rebellion staged by female students. There weren't many of those. I guess you could say that those films originated in Japan. Shit! At the time, nobody really made a big deal of the fashion aspect. But girls who see these films today all marvel at how stylish everyone is. Even just the sunglasses they're wearing... They find them very cool. Even now, after 30 years. I don't know what to make of it. Because it wasn't a big deal back then. And the thing is, the girls who were in my movies... they weren't really... They weren't high school kids on the honor roll, not one of them. Most had either dropped out, or... I don't know if I should say this, but... A lot of them were just partying all the time. So in terms of fashion, it was always a struggle. How to look as chic as possible for the least amount of money. Finding cool clothes that didn't cost a lot. And they did their own coordinating too. Matching their own jeans, their tops, their skirts. Inexpensive or not. So what you see onscreen is their own sense of style. Well, delinquent girls are always a lot cooler. Even today. They have no substance, so they want to look good. It's human nature. Well, it's not as if I really wanted to end the series. But at that point, I just wanted to hand it overto another director. But the problem is... it's not easy to transfer something like that. Someone else could try to make anotherfilm, but that never works out. So they ended it. There were other films in the Sukeban vein, like the Delinquent series. There was no shortage of alternatives. As for Toei ending it... That was the last one? My Girl Boss Revenge? Then I think you're right. Didn't Sekimoto make one after that? Oh well, it's not like there's a profound reason for it. Actually, I don't think... As far as movies go, I don't think they're built to last for posterity. And that's exactly what gives movies their value. Because they're in total sync with the era in which they were created. So... I think they're similar to fireworks. All they have to do is linger in the minds of those who saw them. In my case, they're no masterpieces, so I neverthought they'd be... People would still be watching 10, 20 years later. Never crossed my mind! Still, I guess you could say... how should I put it? When you set out to create something... Of course the process of making it is enjoyable in itself... But you have to ask yourself, Just what does it mean to be human? Or...what makes us go on living? And that's what I always tried to keep in mind whenever I made a film. And when you come right down to it... Is life something that's worth living? That's what it all boils down to. Always. And the answer is yes, it is worth living. No matter how wretched that life may be.