Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Kyoto Today
For much of its history, Kyoto has been a microcosm of Japan: when Japan prospered, Kyoto prospered; when
Japan struggled, Kyoto struggled. Now, as Japan works furiously to recover from the Great East Japan Earth-
quake of March 2011, the tourist city of Kyoto is reeling from a devastating drop in the number of both interna-
tional and domestic visitors. And the disaster brought many long-simmering questions to the foreground. Most im-
portantly, just what kind of city does Kyoto want to become?
Classic Kyoto Films
Rashomon (1950) Kurosawa Akira's classic uses the southern gate of Kyoto as the setting for a 12th-century
rape and murder story told from several perspectives.
Sisters of Nishijin (1952) The father of a silk-weaving family kills himself as the family is caught between the
old and the new.
Lost in Translation (2003) Most of this film takes place in Tokyo, but there's a lovely montage of shots of the
heroine's trip to Kyoto.
Kyoto Novels
The Old Capital (Kawabata Yasunari; 1962) A young woman's past is disturbed by the discovery of a twin sister
in another family.
The Temple of the Golden Pavilion (Mishima Yukio; 1956) A fictionalised account of a young Buddhist acolyte
who burned down Kyoto's famous Golden Pavilion in 1950.
Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden; 1997) This account of the life of a Kyoto geisha was later turned into a
successful movie (most of which was not filmed in Kyoto).
Search WWH ::




Custom Search