As Director, As Writer
The Living Koheiji
1982
6.5
Nobuo Nakagawa
Directing
Birth date
April 18, 1905
Birth place
Kyōto, Kyōto Prefecture, Japan
Death date
June 17, 1984
Biography
Nobuo Nakagawa (中川 信夫, Nakagawa Nobuo, April 18, 1905 – June 17, 1984) was a Japanese film director, most famous for the stylized, folk tale-influenced horror films he made in the 1950s and 1960s. Born in Kyoto, Nakagawa was early on influenced by proletarian literature and wrote amateur film reviews for the Kinema Junpō film magazine. He joined Makino Film Productions in 1929 as an assistant director and worked under Masahiro Makino. When that studio went bankrupt in 1932, he switched to Utaemon Ichikawa's production company and made his debut as a director in 1934 with Yumiya Hachiman Ken. He later moved to Toho, where he made comedies starring Enoken and even documentaries during the war. It was at Shintoho after the war that he became known for his cinematic adaptations of Japanese Kaidan, especially his masterful version of Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan in 1959. To Western audiences, his most famous film is Jigoku (1960), which he also co-wrote. The film was released on DVD by the Criterion Collection in 2006. He also filmed many Kaidan for television. His last film was 1982's Kaidan: Ikiteiru Koheiji.
Featured in
As Director
Okatsu the Fugitive
1969
6.1
As Director
Quick-draw Okatsu
1969
5.7
As Director, As Writer
Snake Woman's Curse
1968
5.5
As Director
The Phantom Goblin
1962
6.0
As Director, As Writer
Jigoku
1960
6.4
As Director
Death Row Woman
1960
6.0
As Director
The Ghost of Yotsuya
1959
6.5
As Director
Kagebôshi: The Shadow Avenger
1959
10.0
As Director
The Lady Vampire
1959
4.9
As Director
Black Cat Mansion
1958
6.3
As Director
A Wicked Woman
1958
6.5
As Director
The Ghost of Kasane
1957
6.7
As Director
The Ceiling at Utsunomiya
1956
5.8
As Director
The Vampire Moth
1956
4.6
As Director
Chutaro of Banba
1955
5.0