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Yasuharu Hasebe (1932 - 2009) / Decreased Asia Coverage at Screen

The below obituary for director Hasebe Yasuharu (長谷部安春監督) was written for Screen but unfortunately the budget daleks in London feel that unless a story holds a strong interest for readers in "the West", news from Asia is about as relevant as the surface temperature on Mars. Obituaries of well-known Japanese directors fall into the latter category.

All the trades are suffering cuts as we know -- Screen is no exception. Unfortunately there will be less of our great reporting in the Asia bureau (and a shorter standard article length) but we're not down for the count yet.


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Japanese director Yasuharu Hasebe dies at 77

77-year-old Japanese director Yasuharu Hasebe died of pneumonia on June 14, local media reported on Saturday. Hasebe was known for his action and exploitation films of the 1960s and 70s. In 2009 he made a return to mainstream feature films with a sequel in Toei's hit Partners franchise.

Tokyo native Hasebe joined Nikkatsu studios in 1958 as an assistant director under the likes of Suzuki Seijun. With 1966 directorial debut Black Tight Killers he became a key director in the company's line of action pictures including cult series Stray Cat Rock. He later spearheaded the "violent pink" line of hit exploitation releases.

Hasebe's work screened in the "No Borders, No Limits" Nikkatsu action retrospective at the Udine Far East Film Festival in 2005, which later toured the US.

In the 1980s Hasebe worked primarily in TV, heading up Nippon Television series Dangerous Detectives as well as its successful feature film version.

He later became a regular director on TV Asahi's Partners series, which Toei adapted into a $46m (Y4.44b) grossing 2008 smash. As reported on Screendaily.com last July, Toei announced a spin-off to be directed by Hasebe, marking his return to features.

In March of this year the lower profile sequel Partners: Investigator Mamoru Yonezawa’s Case File, based on a novel by Hasebe's son, earned approximately $7m.

Posted by Jason Gray at 6/22/2009 01:37:00 PM