De la tradition à la modernité : figures emblématiques et mutations esthétiques du cinéma japonais

Abstract

This article analyzes the evolution of Japanese cinema by highlighting how it articulates cultural heritage and aesthetic innovation. Based on a diachronic approach grounded in film analysis, it shows that this cinema develops through a dynamic of hybridization, shaped both by the influence of traditions (particularly theatrical forms) and by the integration of Western influences. The study emphasizes that filmmakers such as Mizoguchi and Ozu exemplify a form of modernity rooted in continuity, while the postwar period and the Japanese New Wave introduce major aesthetic and critical transformations. Contemporary cinema extends this evolution by combining cultural identity with universal openness. Thus, Japanese cinema is characterized by a transformed continuity, in which innovation and tradition coexist in the construction of a coherent and distinctive aesthetic.