Conference Presentations by Leena Eerolainen
“J-horror from the Viewpoint of the Family” (Kazoku no shiten kara mita J-horaa). In Endo, Hideak... more “J-horror from the Viewpoint of the Family” (Kazoku no shiten kara mita J-horaa). In Endo, Hideaki & Okamoto, Takeshi (eds.): Theory of Media Contents (Media kontentsu-ron). Japan: Nakanishiya-shuppan, 2016.
「メディアコンテンツ論」
ナカニシヤ出版、2016年
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Presented in the EAJS International Conference in Lisbon, 2017.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Presented in the EAJS Japanese Studies Conference in Kobe, 2016.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Presented in the 10th conference of the Nordic Association of Japanese and Korean Studies (NAJAKS... more Presented in the 10th conference of the Nordic Association of Japanese and Korean Studies (NAJAKS) in Stockholm, Sweden, on August 17-19, 2016.
The aim of this paper is to trace the notion of transformation in relation to masculinity in postwar Japanese weird cinema. By weird cinema I refer to a body of works that is counter-intuitive in nature and inclusive of, but not limited to, horror. I will concentrate on two postwar periods during which weird films appeared in large: the 1950s/1960s, and the 1990s/2000s.
When talking about Japanese horror or weird cinema, kaidan (ghost stories) featuring an avenging female ghost are the first ones to come to mind. However, even though women in Japanese (horror) cinema have been much analyzed, very little scholarly attention has been paid to their male counterparts. In addition to the very obvious case of Tsukamoto Shinya’s Tetsuo (1989), there have been, and still are, various human-shaped and masculine embodiments of monstrosity. Their transformation, as opposed to the henshin heroes of anime is ultimately subversive, as can be deduced from Saitō Minako’s theory on heroic metamorphosis (1998).
These henshin antiheroes of Japanese cinema provide an interesting outlook on how hegemonic Japanese masculinity (from soldiers to demilitarized soldiers to corporate soldiers) is negotiated in post-Occupation Japan, often in relation to both the healthy bodies of women and the advances of science. The situation resembles that of South Korean melodrama, where the power and authority assigned to men by the patriarchal social order are seriously undermined by national traumas, and as a result, their masculinity is brought to crisis of which femininity is a symbolic symptom (Cho, 2005). This paper will yield a new paradigm for understanding the construction of fear in relation to concerns of changing gender roles, identities and expectations in Japanese cinema as represented through the mode of the weird.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
In my paper I will analyze Tōhō’s Henshin ningen trilogy, which is one of the lesser known tokusa... more In my paper I will analyze Tōhō’s Henshin ningen trilogy, which is one of the lesser known tokusatsu film cycles of the late 1950s and early 1960s. The series was aimed first and foremost at an adult audience, including for example erotic cabaret dancing scenes. Two of the films were directed by Honda Ishirō, the director of Gojira (1954).
Transformation is one of the key tropes of both Japanese fantastic/strange cinema as well as Japanese folklore. The henshin ningen films include monsters like ‘H-men’, ‘telegians’ and ‘human vapor’ that provide an interesting outlook on how these characters and their victims are used to negotiate the transformation of hegemonic masculinity (from soldiers to corporate soldiers) in post-Occupation Japan. Ultimately I argue that corporeal transformation (変身) paves way for a psychological transformation (変心), as the transformed human beings start preferring their new form of existence. They gain a new identity that is overtly subversive and thus horrifying and disastrous, and, compared to the later anime henshin heroes, the transformation of the henshin ningen is ultimately non-conformist. They are what Yoshikuni Igarashi calls ‘bodies of memories’.
Through an in-depth analysis of the antagonists, it is possible to point out the definitive factors – mainly science and transformation of masculinity – which are perceived as socially threatening during the time of the release of the films. Some of these concerns are taken further in the recent works of the J-horror movement, in which I suggest we focus on the psychological transformation of the male protagonists instead of the female yūrei. It seems that much of the Japanese is ultimately concerned with the fear of another human being.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Presented in a discussion group session in the Nordic Association for the Study of Contemporary J... more Presented in a discussion group session in the Nordic Association for the Study of Contemporary Japanese Society conference in Helsinki, March 2014. Preliminary draft, please feel free to request the paper :)
Ever since Ringu (1997) was released and remade in the U.S as The Ring (2002), Japanese horror cinema has gained a lot of attention. However, what is considered “Japanese horror” varies greatly. Some definitions are, if not totally faulty, at least problematic. There is also a great difference in approaches adopted by Japanese and non-Japanese scholars, which will be the starting point and overlying theme of this paper.
My aim is first to shed light on the discourses and approaches on Japanese horror cinema. I will discuss the notions of “J-horror”, “Japanese horror”, “kaiki eiga” and “Asia Extreme”, and try to decipher the various ways in which all of these have been put together to form an all-encompassing category of “J-horror”. I will shortly introduce various psychoanalytic approaches, which no doubt affect much of the non-Japanese research. I will then continue by critically introducing the main thematic concerns of the films, continually comparing the Japanese and non-Japanese approach. Finally, I will argue that transformation is the main concern of all these films, visible in the texts but yet to be discussed in length.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Spatiotemporal creation of horror in Kurosawa Kiyoshi's horror works, in relation to the changing... more Spatiotemporal creation of horror in Kurosawa Kiyoshi's horror works, in relation to the changing family structure.
Presented in Japanese Language in Finland seminar, 10/2011.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Papers by Leena Eerolainen
Ever since the emergence of the so-called J-horror in the
late 1990s and early 21s... more Ever since the emergence of the so-called J-horror in the
late 1990s and early 21st century, Japanese horror cinema
has been a staple of both Japanese studies and film studies.
Researchers, critics and film directors alike have been keen
to observe and analyze the popularity and roots of the
phenomenon. While many previous studies work extremely
well on a detailed case-study level, there are many moments
of confusion related to the general understanding of what
horror actually is. My aim in this essay is to point out the
various contradictions and differing opinions and, ultimately,
to propose that we take an alternative outlook altogether. I
suggest we approach the subject matter from the viewpoint
of the fantastic, which I see as a mode visible in various genres
including but not limited to, horror. This will position Japanese
horror cinema as one element within the long tradition of
fantastic representations in Japanese (popular) culture, both
offering a new approach to old works and introducing new
works as interesting analyzable content.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Master of Arts thesis
University of Helsinki
03/2011
Please feel free to request the full thesis.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Talks by Leena Eerolainen
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Teaching Documents by Leena Eerolainen
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Book chapters & other contributions by Leena Eerolainen
Jimenez Murguia, Salvador (ed.) Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, Maryland (forthcoming in 2016).
S... more Jimenez Murguia, Salvador (ed.) Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, Maryland (forthcoming in 2016).
Summaries of "Kotoko" (2012), "Niji otoko" (1949) and "The Henshin ningen trilogy" (1958-1960).
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
ヘルシンキ大学世界文化学科編 / 植村友香子+オウティ・スメードルンド監訳
新評論、2012年。
This translation is based on the Finnish versio... more ヘルシンキ大学世界文化学科編 / 植村友香子+オウティ・スメードルンド監訳
新評論、2012年。
This translation is based on the Finnish version "Japanese Language in Finland" (Helsinki University Press, 2010) for which I contributed with interviewing Japanese-speaking professionals in Finland. I am also one of the translators of the Japanese edition.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Uploads
Conference Presentations by Leena Eerolainen
「メディアコンテンツ論」
ナカニシヤ出版、2016年
The aim of this paper is to trace the notion of transformation in relation to masculinity in postwar Japanese weird cinema. By weird cinema I refer to a body of works that is counter-intuitive in nature and inclusive of, but not limited to, horror. I will concentrate on two postwar periods during which weird films appeared in large: the 1950s/1960s, and the 1990s/2000s.
When talking about Japanese horror or weird cinema, kaidan (ghost stories) featuring an avenging female ghost are the first ones to come to mind. However, even though women in Japanese (horror) cinema have been much analyzed, very little scholarly attention has been paid to their male counterparts. In addition to the very obvious case of Tsukamoto Shinya’s Tetsuo (1989), there have been, and still are, various human-shaped and masculine embodiments of monstrosity. Their transformation, as opposed to the henshin heroes of anime is ultimately subversive, as can be deduced from Saitō Minako’s theory on heroic metamorphosis (1998).
These henshin antiheroes of Japanese cinema provide an interesting outlook on how hegemonic Japanese masculinity (from soldiers to demilitarized soldiers to corporate soldiers) is negotiated in post-Occupation Japan, often in relation to both the healthy bodies of women and the advances of science. The situation resembles that of South Korean melodrama, where the power and authority assigned to men by the patriarchal social order are seriously undermined by national traumas, and as a result, their masculinity is brought to crisis of which femininity is a symbolic symptom (Cho, 2005). This paper will yield a new paradigm for understanding the construction of fear in relation to concerns of changing gender roles, identities and expectations in Japanese cinema as represented through the mode of the weird.
Transformation is one of the key tropes of both Japanese fantastic/strange cinema as well as Japanese folklore. The henshin ningen films include monsters like ‘H-men’, ‘telegians’ and ‘human vapor’ that provide an interesting outlook on how these characters and their victims are used to negotiate the transformation of hegemonic masculinity (from soldiers to corporate soldiers) in post-Occupation Japan. Ultimately I argue that corporeal transformation (変身) paves way for a psychological transformation (変心), as the transformed human beings start preferring their new form of existence. They gain a new identity that is overtly subversive and thus horrifying and disastrous, and, compared to the later anime henshin heroes, the transformation of the henshin ningen is ultimately non-conformist. They are what Yoshikuni Igarashi calls ‘bodies of memories’.
Through an in-depth analysis of the antagonists, it is possible to point out the definitive factors – mainly science and transformation of masculinity – which are perceived as socially threatening during the time of the release of the films. Some of these concerns are taken further in the recent works of the J-horror movement, in which I suggest we focus on the psychological transformation of the male protagonists instead of the female yūrei. It seems that much of the Japanese is ultimately concerned with the fear of another human being.
Ever since Ringu (1997) was released and remade in the U.S as The Ring (2002), Japanese horror cinema has gained a lot of attention. However, what is considered “Japanese horror” varies greatly. Some definitions are, if not totally faulty, at least problematic. There is also a great difference in approaches adopted by Japanese and non-Japanese scholars, which will be the starting point and overlying theme of this paper.
My aim is first to shed light on the discourses and approaches on Japanese horror cinema. I will discuss the notions of “J-horror”, “Japanese horror”, “kaiki eiga” and “Asia Extreme”, and try to decipher the various ways in which all of these have been put together to form an all-encompassing category of “J-horror”. I will shortly introduce various psychoanalytic approaches, which no doubt affect much of the non-Japanese research. I will then continue by critically introducing the main thematic concerns of the films, continually comparing the Japanese and non-Japanese approach. Finally, I will argue that transformation is the main concern of all these films, visible in the texts but yet to be discussed in length.
Presented in Japanese Language in Finland seminar, 10/2011.
Papers by Leena Eerolainen
late 1990s and early 21st century, Japanese horror cinema
has been a staple of both Japanese studies and film studies.
Researchers, critics and film directors alike have been keen
to observe and analyze the popularity and roots of the
phenomenon. While many previous studies work extremely
well on a detailed case-study level, there are many moments
of confusion related to the general understanding of what
horror actually is. My aim in this essay is to point out the
various contradictions and differing opinions and, ultimately,
to propose that we take an alternative outlook altogether. I
suggest we approach the subject matter from the viewpoint
of the fantastic, which I see as a mode visible in various genres
including but not limited to, horror. This will position Japanese
horror cinema as one element within the long tradition of
fantastic representations in Japanese (popular) culture, both
offering a new approach to old works and introducing new
works as interesting analyzable content.
Talks by Leena Eerolainen
Teaching Documents by Leena Eerolainen
Book chapters & other contributions by Leena Eerolainen
Summaries of "Kotoko" (2012), "Niji otoko" (1949) and "The Henshin ningen trilogy" (1958-1960).
新評論、2012年。
This translation is based on the Finnish version "Japanese Language in Finland" (Helsinki University Press, 2010) for which I contributed with interviewing Japanese-speaking professionals in Finland. I am also one of the translators of the Japanese edition.
「メディアコンテンツ論」
ナカニシヤ出版、2016年
The aim of this paper is to trace the notion of transformation in relation to masculinity in postwar Japanese weird cinema. By weird cinema I refer to a body of works that is counter-intuitive in nature and inclusive of, but not limited to, horror. I will concentrate on two postwar periods during which weird films appeared in large: the 1950s/1960s, and the 1990s/2000s.
When talking about Japanese horror or weird cinema, kaidan (ghost stories) featuring an avenging female ghost are the first ones to come to mind. However, even though women in Japanese (horror) cinema have been much analyzed, very little scholarly attention has been paid to their male counterparts. In addition to the very obvious case of Tsukamoto Shinya’s Tetsuo (1989), there have been, and still are, various human-shaped and masculine embodiments of monstrosity. Their transformation, as opposed to the henshin heroes of anime is ultimately subversive, as can be deduced from Saitō Minako’s theory on heroic metamorphosis (1998).
These henshin antiheroes of Japanese cinema provide an interesting outlook on how hegemonic Japanese masculinity (from soldiers to demilitarized soldiers to corporate soldiers) is negotiated in post-Occupation Japan, often in relation to both the healthy bodies of women and the advances of science. The situation resembles that of South Korean melodrama, where the power and authority assigned to men by the patriarchal social order are seriously undermined by national traumas, and as a result, their masculinity is brought to crisis of which femininity is a symbolic symptom (Cho, 2005). This paper will yield a new paradigm for understanding the construction of fear in relation to concerns of changing gender roles, identities and expectations in Japanese cinema as represented through the mode of the weird.
Transformation is one of the key tropes of both Japanese fantastic/strange cinema as well as Japanese folklore. The henshin ningen films include monsters like ‘H-men’, ‘telegians’ and ‘human vapor’ that provide an interesting outlook on how these characters and their victims are used to negotiate the transformation of hegemonic masculinity (from soldiers to corporate soldiers) in post-Occupation Japan. Ultimately I argue that corporeal transformation (変身) paves way for a psychological transformation (変心), as the transformed human beings start preferring their new form of existence. They gain a new identity that is overtly subversive and thus horrifying and disastrous, and, compared to the later anime henshin heroes, the transformation of the henshin ningen is ultimately non-conformist. They are what Yoshikuni Igarashi calls ‘bodies of memories’.
Through an in-depth analysis of the antagonists, it is possible to point out the definitive factors – mainly science and transformation of masculinity – which are perceived as socially threatening during the time of the release of the films. Some of these concerns are taken further in the recent works of the J-horror movement, in which I suggest we focus on the psychological transformation of the male protagonists instead of the female yūrei. It seems that much of the Japanese is ultimately concerned with the fear of another human being.
Ever since Ringu (1997) was released and remade in the U.S as The Ring (2002), Japanese horror cinema has gained a lot of attention. However, what is considered “Japanese horror” varies greatly. Some definitions are, if not totally faulty, at least problematic. There is also a great difference in approaches adopted by Japanese and non-Japanese scholars, which will be the starting point and overlying theme of this paper.
My aim is first to shed light on the discourses and approaches on Japanese horror cinema. I will discuss the notions of “J-horror”, “Japanese horror”, “kaiki eiga” and “Asia Extreme”, and try to decipher the various ways in which all of these have been put together to form an all-encompassing category of “J-horror”. I will shortly introduce various psychoanalytic approaches, which no doubt affect much of the non-Japanese research. I will then continue by critically introducing the main thematic concerns of the films, continually comparing the Japanese and non-Japanese approach. Finally, I will argue that transformation is the main concern of all these films, visible in the texts but yet to be discussed in length.
Presented in Japanese Language in Finland seminar, 10/2011.
late 1990s and early 21st century, Japanese horror cinema
has been a staple of both Japanese studies and film studies.
Researchers, critics and film directors alike have been keen
to observe and analyze the popularity and roots of the
phenomenon. While many previous studies work extremely
well on a detailed case-study level, there are many moments
of confusion related to the general understanding of what
horror actually is. My aim in this essay is to point out the
various contradictions and differing opinions and, ultimately,
to propose that we take an alternative outlook altogether. I
suggest we approach the subject matter from the viewpoint
of the fantastic, which I see as a mode visible in various genres
including but not limited to, horror. This will position Japanese
horror cinema as one element within the long tradition of
fantastic representations in Japanese (popular) culture, both
offering a new approach to old works and introducing new
works as interesting analyzable content.
Summaries of "Kotoko" (2012), "Niji otoko" (1949) and "The Henshin ningen trilogy" (1958-1960).
新評論、2012年。
This translation is based on the Finnish version "Japanese Language in Finland" (Helsinki University Press, 2010) for which I contributed with interviewing Japanese-speaking professionals in Finland. I am also one of the translators of the Japanese edition.