Fräulein Setsuko Hara: constructing an international film star in nationalist contexts

Abstract

Hara Setsuko is today seen as one of the great female icons of the ‘Golden Age’ of Japanese cinema. Relatively little attention has been paid, however, to the early formation of her star persona in the mid-1930s, historically a pivotal time for Japan and hence for Hara, due to the close connection between the nation's social history and its stars. At a time of profound change of the national self-image, Hara was catapulted into stardom by a film closely, but not exclusively, related to politics. This star-constructing took place in, and utilized, an international environment, aiming at making Hara Japan's ‘first international film star’ at a time of increasingly fierce nationalism. This article traces the transnational origin of Hara's career, arguing that the subsequent ability of her star image to signify ‘Japaneseness’ in all its variations (militarism, post-war democracy, nostalgia for times past) without losing its authenticity in the face of apparent contradictions is based in this event. Hara's star image mirrors the question of what Japan is or should be, because it was constructed out of this very discourse of international aspirations, national desires and a transnational context.