A Stranger in Shanghai

In a gloomy day, agonized with painful, infuriating news I watched "A Stranger in Shanghai" based on brilliant Japanese writer Ryunosuke Akutagawa's diary during the turbulent time in 1921, Shanghai.

Beautifully written, directed and acted. 
 

"A Stranger in Shanghai recounts the true story of Ryunosuke Akutagawa, one of Japan’s most endearing and highly regarded writers, who under somewhat mysterious circumstances accepted a position as a newspaper correspondent in Shanghai, and while there, witnessed the suffering of its citizens who were under foreign concessions of western European countries and Japan. As he covered the revolution in Shanghai, Akutagawa forged relationships with the working men, and women in the brothels, living in Shanghai.

The story of Akutagawa’s time in Shanghai is notable because the author came to be known as “Father of the Japanese Short Story,” after his masterwork “Rashomon” was published. It was later made into a classic film by one of Japan’s most important and influential film directors, Akira Kurosawa."