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''Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters'' is a 1985 American/Japanese film co-written and directed by Paul Schrader. The film is based on the life and work of Japanese writer Yukio Mishima, interweaving episodes from his life with dramatizations of segments from his books ''The Temple of the Golden Pavilion'', ''Kyoko's House'', and ''Runaway Horses''. It was executive produced by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. ==Plot== The film sets in on November 25 1970, the last day in Mishima's life. He is shown finishing a manuscript. Then, he puts on a uniform he designed for himself and meets with four of his most loyal followers from his private army. In flashbacks highlighting episodes from his past life, the viewer sees Mishima's progression from a sickly young boy to one of Japan's most acclaimed writers of the post-war era (who keeps himself in perfect physical shape, owed to a narcissistic body cult). His loathing for the materialism of modern Japan has him turn towards an extremist traditionalism. He sets up his own private army and proclaims the reinstating of the emperor as head of state. The biographical sections are interwoven with short dramatizations of three of Mishima's novels: In ''The Temple of the Golden Pavilion'', a stuttering aspirant sets fire to the famous Zen Buddhist temple because he feels inferior at the sight of its beauty. ''Kyoko's House'' depicts the sadomasochistic (and ultimately fatal) relationship between an elderly woman and her young lover, who is in her financial debt. In ''Runaway Horses'', a group of young fanatic nationalists fails to overthrow the government, with its leader subsequently committing suicide. Frame story, flashbacks and dramatizations are segmented into the four chapters of the film's title, named ''Beauty'', ''Art'', ''Action'', and ''Harmony of Pen and Sword''. The film culminates in Mishima and his followers taking hostage a General of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. He addresses the garrison's soldiers, asking them to join him in his struggle to reinstate the Emperor as the nation's sovereign. His speech is largely ignored and ridiculed. Mishima then returns to the General's office and commits seppuku. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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