The Temple of the Golden Pavilion (Enjo) (1958)

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The Temple of the Golden Pavilion (Enjo)

ORIGINAL TITLE

Enjo (The Temple of the Golden Pavilion) / Flame of Torment / Conflagration

YEAR

1958

RUNNING TIME

99 min.

Suggest trailer/video

COUNTRY

(New) Visual section

DIRECTOR

Kon Ichikawa

SCREENWRITER

Keiji Hasebe, Kon Ichikawa, Natto Wada (Novel: Yukio Mishima)

COMPOSER

Toshirô Mayuzumi

CINEMATOGRAPHER

Kazuo Miyagawa (B&N)

CAST

Raizô Ichikawa, Tatsuya Nakadai, Ganjiro Nakamura, Yoichi Funaki, Tamao Nakamura, Jun Hamamura, Tanie Kitabayashi, Michiyo Aratama, Kinzo Shin, Yôko Uraji

STUDIO/PRODUCER

Daiei Kyoto / Daiei Motion Picture Company

GENRE

Drama

SYNOPSIS/PLOT

Told in an intricate flashback structure, Enjo dramatizes the psychological collapse of Goichi (Raizo Ichikawa), a young Buddhist acolyte from a dysfunctional family who arrives at a Kyoto temple - the Golden Pavillion - for further study.

Goichi is haunted by two events - the discovery of his psychologically abusive mother's infidelity, and the effect of the revelation upon his father, who suddenly falls ill and dies shortly thereafter. Shy and idealistic - and hindered by a stuttering problem - Goichi arrives at the temple haunted by his dying father's sentiment that "the Golden Pavillion of the Shukaku Temple is the most beautiful thing in the world."[1]

In the wake of entering into his studies, Goichi is visited by his now-widowed mother, who unexpectedly states her wish that he strive to succeed in his studies, so that he might one day become the head priest at the temple. Under unexpected pressure from his irresponsible surviving parent, Goichi then must face a challenge to his own ideals upon discovery of the head priest's greed (the temple is being run as a tourist attraction, though an appearance of piety must be presented to outsiders) and his indiscreet pairings with a local geisha.

A flashback (one of many within the entire film's greater structure) to the funeral of Goichi's father introduces the idea of a cleansing inferno; with an escalating sense of desperation, Goichi sets fire to the pavillion. He is subsequently repudiated by his mother, and ultimately commits suicide before being taken to prison.

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6.7

(25 votes)

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