Ken Ichikawa’s film breaks my heart.
In the very best possible way. It’s proof that you don’t need a constant feed of stats, overlays and yammering commentators to appreciate the beauty of total athletic and artistic commitment. And unlike Riefenstahl’s formalistic (moving stills) “Olympia,” it’s observational.
In all, a supreme achievement, delivering both intimacy & majesty from moment to moment. 100 cameras, 164 camera operators, 74 hours of footage, one film. And the Japanese Olympic Committee hated it, which makes it all the cooler for being released at all.
Tragically, the Criterion Edition DVD is out of print. It’s available on Ebay for $150+.