Miss Hokusai [2015 Film]

Miss Hokusai  is a film adaption of a published manga by Hinako Sugiura that recounts the life of Katsushika Oei, the daughter of the infamous Ukiyo-e painter, Hokusai. This is a particularly unique film as its animation design uses the style of Ukiyo-e painting to mirror the particular art of 1800s Japan and the same style performed by Oei.  Throughout the film, we are able to experience ancient Edo through the eyes of Oei, the vivid sceneries opening us up to the challenges, beauty and life style of Oei as she works in the shadows of Hokusai in 1800s Japan.

  The movie consists of a a few selected stories from the manga. The first segment introduces us to her life. As an assistant artist to Hokusai working under her father's shadow, she paints pictures that do not bear her signature, but are still recognized as Hokusai's own work. We are shown various scenes that give us the impression that Oei portrays the rare indifference to Japan's is historical predominately patriarchal society. She smokes, doesn't cook, and is solely devoted to the paintings she and her father works on. Her passion for painting and her pride as a working woman at the time is truly an empowering and feminist appeal that makes this film amusing to watch.

Real Portrayal - Movie Portrayal

The story of Oei in the movie is somewhat questionable in terms of historical accuracy and consistency with other published sources.  The story is spot on in terms of the era and Oei's personality, however, when compared to other sources such as the "Paintmakers daughter", there are obvious differences. Historically Oei had 1 older half brother, 2 older half sisters, and a younger brother. In the film she has O-nao, a younger sister, but she may not have actually existed as there is no record. Another thing to note is about Hokusai. They got his passion for painting and lack of care for hygiene right, but he was portrayed in the film as a germaphobic middle age man who enjoyed going out to flirt with women.  The real Hokusai was noted to be an old man, and while he did hang around the pleasure quarters, it was mostly to paint for business.  While there are many other inconsistencies I can pick out, there is little assurance that both medias can testify the real life of Oei, as there is little published information about her. What little information is known about her comes from loose testimonies from a student of Hokusai, Tsuyuki Litsu.

The particular reason I chose Miss Hokusai to sponsor on my blog is because of two reasons: 1, this movie ties well into my Asian American Class. This movie is able to vividly portray the life style and world of 18th century Japan to a wide audience; not only that, but the Ukiyo-e based animation and really emphasizes the beauty of the art form, as we see both the original and the more modern take on this traditional style of art. The music used in this movie is absolutely stunning which connect the audience emotionally to the scenes in the movie. My second reason for sponsoring this movie is that  Oei is a significant inspiration not only to Japan, but to all women alike. Hokusai is recognized already as a huge cultural contributor, Oei's name and work has only just recently to have been discovered. Even I didn't know about her until this movie came out; now that I have been introduced, it has further encouraged me to learn more about her and Japanese Art history. Oei's talents and life work is highly underestimated and as a fellow artist and female, I feel that I should contribute to the spread and awareness of her work!

Info Sources: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Hokusai

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katsushika_%C5%8Ci