Synopsis
“The extended engagement with the intellectual and cultural roots of modern Japanese politics explored by
Yoshida in
Eros + Massacre [culminated] with
Coup d'état, his remarkable portrait of Ikki Kita, a controversial militarist who led the notorious February 26, 1836 coup later fetishized by
Yukio Mishima.
Yoshida's first non-widescreen feature,
Coup d'état brilliantly exploits the smaller format with stunning, sharply modernist cinematography and mise-en- scène that favors unusual, off-kilter compositions and works to heighten the claustrophobia of Kia's increasing paranoia and delusion.
Coup d'état also features an incredible score by noted avant-garde composer and frequent
Yoshida collaborator
Ichiyanagi Sei.” – Harvard Film Archive
