The Cinematheque

35mm Print

“Carmen from Kawachi doesn’t disappoint in delivering Suzuki’s signature goods: pulp, melodrama, satire, and style galore.”

Jessica Smith, TIFF

A 1960s riff on the opera Carmen (including a rock version of its famous aria ​“Habanera”), this picaresque tale sends its hero from the countryside to Osaka and Tokyo in search of success as a singer. Her journey is fraught with exploitation and abuse at the hands of nefarious men—until Carmen seeks revenge. Mixing comedy, biting social commentary, and Suzuki’s customarily outrageous stylistic flourishes, this fast-paced gem is an overlooked classic from his creative late period at Nikkatsu Studios. ​“One of Suzuki’s trilogy of women-centered films from the mid-’60s … Nogawa Yumiko, Suzuki’s favourite actress, [gives] a wide-eyed yet weary performance … True to form, Suzuki adds plenty of black humour and a surreal, ironic edge” (Ted Shen, Chicago Reader). —Tom Vick

In Japanese with English subtitles

“[Suzuki’s] interest is in non-conformists—in what was, in his heyday, one of the most conformist societies in the world—whether they are intellectuals (The Incorrigible One) or murderous good-time girls (Carmen from Kawachi).”

Tony Rayns, Sight and Sound

“[Contains] the most overtly meta-cinematic sequence in Suzuki’s Nikkatsu films, and perhaps his entire oeuvre.”

William Carroll