The Perfect German Woman: Gender and Imperialism in Arnold Fanck's Die Tochter des Samurai and Itami Mansaku's The New Earth

This article examines the interconnection of gender, race, and propaganda in two German-Japanese filmic co-productions: Arnold Fanck's Die Tochter des Samurai and Itami Mansaku's The New Earth (both 1937). My analysis will focus on the female title hero of both films, the samurai daughter Mitsuko, portrayed by Hara Setsuko. By situating Fanck's film in the context of a longer Western obsession with East Asia, I will demonstrate how Mitsuko becomes the perfect vehicle for National Socialist propaganda, effortlessly embodying traditional values while appealing to a modern audience. Mitsuko's character is furthermore the site where Itami and Fanck's contrasting perspectives on Japan become apparent, with Itami utilizing the character to push back against Fanck's exoticizing gaze. Thus, these films, and in particular their representation of gender and race, constitute the site of a power struggle between Nazi Germany's depiction of Japan and Japan's struggle to assert its own self-image.