Nobuo Nakagawa
Personal Info
Known for
Directing
Gender
Male
Birthday
1905-04-18
Day of Death
1984-06-17 (79 years old)
Place of Birth
Kyōto, Kyōto Prefecture, Japan
Nobuo Nakagawa
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.
Known For
Crew
(1982)
The Living Koheiji
Director, Writer
(1979)
(1978)
Sea of Wonders
Director
(1971)
(1971)
(1971)
(1971)
(1971)
(1969)
Quick-draw Okatsu
Director
(1969)
Okatsu the Fugitive
Director
(1969)
さくら盃 義兄弟
Director
(1968)
Snake Woman's Curse
Director, Writer
(1963)
This Is Japan
Director
(1963)
男の嵐
Director
(1962)
Kanashimi wa itsumo haha ni
Director
(1962)
The Phantom Goblin
Director
(1962)
(1962)
Showdown at Lightning Pass
Screenplay, Director
(1962)
The Warrior from Kishu
Screenplay, Director
(1961)
Kaachan
Director
(1961)
Samurai Hawk
Director
(1961)
(1960)
Jigoku
Director, Screenplay
(1960)
Death Row Woman
Director
(1959)
The Ghost of Yotsuya
Director
(1959)
The Lady Vampire
Director
(1959)
The Shadow Avenger
Director
(1958)
Black Cat Mansion
Director
(1958)
A Wicked Woman
Director
(1958)
Ghost in the Regiment
Director
(1958)
Kyōen Kobanzame
Director
(1957)
The Ghost of Kasane
Director
(1957)
Hibari ga oka no taiketsu
Director
(1956)
The Ceiling at Utsunomiya
Director
(1956)
The Vampire Moth
Director
(1956)
(1955)
Chutaro of Banba
Director
(1955)
Stray Sheep
Director
(1953)
An Edoite Judge
Director
(1953)
Shishun no izumi
Director
(1953)
(1952)
(1952)
Love's Zephir Along the Tokaido
Director
(1952)
Today is Payday
Director
(1952)
Sunset Over Mount Fuji
Director
(1951)
Conduct Report on Matashiro: The Devil Princess and Winter Rain
Director, Writer
(1951)
右門捕物帖 片眼狼
Director
(1951)
(1951)
Farewell to the Highland Station
Director
(1950)
Amakara chindōchū
Director
(1949)
Late Night Confession
Director
(1949)
The Adventures of Tobisuke
Director
(1949)
Rinchi
Director
(1941)
The Poppy
Director
(1940)
Enoken's Bow-Wow General
Director
(1940)
Enoken Enters the Ring
Director
(1939)
Rivals
Director
(1939)
Enoken's Yaji and Kita
Director
(1939)
Enoken's Mori no Ishimatsu
Director
(1939)
(1938)
Itahachi shima
Director, Screenplay