The Black Lizard

The Black Lizard is an interesting title for a movie that is a little hard to describe.  It's a Japanese film from 1962, sort of in the vein of lower budget spy films from that era and beyond.  A somewhat strange looking female arch criminal wishes to kidnap the daughter of a rich Japanese business man (played hilariously by the actor), and to steal his most precious diamond.  The first time she is thwarted by Japan's best private detective.  The second time she is more successful.  The detective and the female crook fall in love, but it is unfullfilled.  That is the basic plot.  The film is more like an avante garde stage play sometimes, with lighting changing rapidly, and the cast breaking out in song and dance at times.  It really is a unique film, and a lot of fun to watch.  Reading on-line about the film later, Deb found out that the part of Black Lizard, the female nemesis, is played by Japan's leading female impersonator, adding even more bizareness to the mix.  Recommended.

 Black Lizard, Japanese, 1962.  Showing on Criterion Channel.  

Deb's choice was a 1937 Japanese period drama, mostly about a ronin and his wife living in a poverty-stricken street that seems to have its share of action.  Humanity and Paper Balloons gives an interesting slice of life of the down and out, and were it not for the very depressing ending, I would have rated this film much higher.  The film begins with a hanging, and ends with a double suicide, but in between there are some fine characterizations and interesting plot turns.  It all could have been done on a stage as a play, and perhaps it was.  The downtrodden are stepped upon, or even worse, ignored, by the richer and more powerful members of society is an age-old tale, not restricted to any set culture or time period.  Some fine acting, and certainly worth watching.

 Humanity and Paper Balloons, 1937.  Japanese film showing on Criterion Channel. 

In local news, Deb seems to be recovering nicely from her third and final laser surgery.  One by one she is getting her physical problems resolved.  Her R.A. continues to be in chemical remission. 

I am playing a PC game called "Return to Mysterious Island," the very same island that Jules Verne wrote about (the game is the return to the island).  It's an inventory based game, where the player has to combine inventory items (dozens and dozens of them) in order to make progress in the game.  It's fun but pretty difficult, and I think I may have messed up and have to start over.  I hope not, as I detest games that do such things to a player.  But I appear to have misused an item, and now need it for something else, which is no longer possible.  We shall see.

 My latest adventure game on PC.  I'm running it on XP, but in Windows 2000 compatibility mode.  It's working perfectly!

Winter continues its retreat.  Brigid has been put away for another year.  She successfully diverted two snowstorms while she was out, and while we did have our coldest temps of the season, they only lasted 48 hours.  Tonight we are supposed to get 2" of snow followed by rain, but it now looks as if we will only get rain.  A warmup is on the way, after one more minor cold spell midweek.  Sunday was beautiful, with a high of 42 F and sunshine.

And now, back to some landscape art, from the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts. 

 Italian Village On A River, B. Breenbergh, Dutch 1598-1657. 

Pen and brush and dark brown ink and brown wash over graphite on white laid paper.

13" x 20".  Detroit Institute of Arts. 

Click for a larger image.

Detail of left side.

Detail of center.

Closer detail of center. 

I wish I could spend days in the graphics department, just looking for landscape drawings and prints.  It's been a long time since a good landscape graphic arts exhibit has been mounted.  Of course the Breugel one we saw in Vienna in 2017 at the Albertina Museum, takes the cake.  Followed the next year by the Breugel painting exhibit.  What an artist's life it's been!

Mapman Mike