カルメン故郷に帰る (Karumen kokyo ni kaeru)

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2025

Dir. KINOSHITA Keisuke
1951 | 86 mins | Japan
Japanese with English Subtitles
TAKAMINE Hideko, KOBAYASHI Toshiko, SANO Shuji, RYU Chishu

Just after the Second World War, in a very rural mountain village, the arrival of a girl, Okin, and her friend attracts curiosity from the locals. Originally a village girl herself Okin has now become an artistic dancer in Tokyo going by the stage name of Carmen.

The principal of the village school (CHISHU Ryu, Tokyo Story), who considers himself a champion of the arts, is overjoyed to learn that his small village produced such an artist. However, when he sees the ways Carmen and her friend dress and behave, he and the other villagers are confused. It turns out that Carmen is not a “true” artistic dancer, but instead an ‘exotic” one and is determined to showcase her dancing skills for the villagers…

This iconic light-hearted comedy was Japan’s first ever feature film produced in full colour. Carmen Comes Home endures as one of KINOSHITA Keisuke’s most beloved films, exploring the shifts and disparities in post-war Japanese moral standards. Starring acclaimed actress TAKAMINE Hideko, who was loved by many era-defining Japanese filmmakers including NARUSE Mikio.

Image: © 1951/2012 Shochiku Co., Ltd.

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2025
Am I Right?
Justice, Justification and Judgement in Japanese Cinema

The UK’s biggest festival of Japanese cinema, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme (JFTFP), is back for its latest and greatest instalment!

In a world where injustice runs rampant, cinematic expressions of justice seem inexhaustible: time and time again, heroic protagonists fend off malicious antagonists or enact their revenge, the constant injustices they face mirroring audiences’ own. Japan is no exception to this, and the JFTFP25 promises to showcase how Japanese filmmakers use the language of cinema to explore the concepts of criminal, social, and moral justice, along with the ways people respond to external judgement. Featuring everything from thought-provoking hidden gems to laugh-a-minute entertainment, UK audiences are invited to join us in questioning the very concepts of justice, justification, and judgement against today’s backdrop of ever-changing values and perspectives

In collaboration with:

Major supporter: Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation

---

Sponsors in Kind: Athletia, Calbee, Clearspring, Pentel and SUQQU

VENUE: EXETER PHOENIX, STUDIO 74

*Subject to a £1.50 ticketing system charge. We don’t charge this to make a profit. Find out more >>