Front Row Life

Front Row Life

Theatrical poster for Front Row Life (1968)
Directed by Tatsumi Kumashiro[1]
Written by Tatsumi Kumashiro
Starring Hatsue Tonooka
Music by Riichiro Manabe
Cinematography Shinsaku Himeda
Edited by Akira Suzuki
Distributed by Nikkatsu
Release dates
April 13, 1968
Running time
94 min.
Country Japan
Language Japanese

Front Row Life (かぶりつき人生 Kaburitsuki jinsei) aka Fan Life, Front Row, A Thirsty Life and Life of a Striptease Love is a 1968 Japanese film directed by Tatsumi Kumashiro. The celebrated Roman Porno director's first film, it was a box-office failure, and stalled his directing career until 1972.

Synopsis

Based on the 1964 novel of the same name by Komimasa Tanaka, the film tells the story of a strip-teaser, and her daughter who wishes to join her mother's profession.[2]

Cast

Background

Tatsumi Kumashiro had been working at Nikkatsu as an assistant director and screenwriter when he was given his first chance to direct, at the age of 41. Front Row Life gained positive reviews from critics, but was not popular with the public. As a result of the film's failure, Nikkatsu returned Kumashiro to assistant directing and scripting. Kumashiro was given his second chance to direct in 1972 after the studio had decided to take over the pink film genre by devoting its resources almost entirely to the output of Roman Porno films. This second film, Wet Lips was a success, and Kumashiro's string of pink blockbusters, which lasted over two-decades, had begun. Kumashiro and leading lady Hatsue Tonooka were married the year the film was released, but were divorced after only a few months.[3]

Bibliography

English

Japanese

Notes

  1. Infobox data from かぶりつき人生(1968) (in Japanese). www.allcinema.net. Retrieved 2009-06-01. and かぶりつき人生 (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  2. かぶりつき人生 (in Japanese). Variety Japan. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  3. Weisser, Thomas; Yuko Mihara Weisser (1998). Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films. Miami: Vital Books : Asian Cult Cinema Publications. pp. 137–138. ISBN 1-889288-52-7.