This 1965 film documenting the 1964 Tokyo Olympiad is one of the greatest films that capture Olympic competition. Influenced by Leni Riefenstahl's "Olympia" (1936), director Kon Ichikawa used a variety of telephoto lenses and slow motion sequences to capture the internal dimensions of the athletes; before, during, and after their events. This DVD is divided into 40 chapters, including the opening and closing ceremony, with many athletic field events (high jump, shot put, pole vault, long jump), as well as other sports such as weightlifting, fencing, boxing, shooting, boating, swimming, volleyball, and gymnastics. Although some athletes and events are briefly explored (such as Peter Snell winning the 1500 meters), each of the following running events are covered with their own chapter: Men's 100m (watch the first Olympic 100 meter final with eight participants as 22-year old Bob Hayes, representing the United States, races in the worn cinders of lane one to an Olympic and World Record mark; over five minutes of footage, much of it in slow motion, is used to capture ten seconds of history), Men's 10,000m (over seven minutes of film is dedicated to what many believe is the greatest upset in Olympic competition: Ron Clarke, the World Record holder in this event, is favored and leads the pack through the first 800 meters in 2:09; the stage is set for this 25 lap challenge and the lead changes multiple times before Billy Mills storms down the homestretch to finish in Olympic Record time of 28:24.4), Women's 800m (Anne Packer sets an Olympic Record of 2:01:01 and claims England's first woman's track gold medal, yet is not seen during the first lap of this race as it is captured by one long camera shot and she is in sixth place at the bell; the climax of this race down the final straightaway follows the race showing just the leg action of the leaders in slow motion), Men's 4x100m relay (another Olympic Record falls as the first five places all improve upon the previous Olympic mark; watch the United State's final handoff from Dick Sebbins to Bob Hayes and then his incredible blast of speed from fifth place to the lead, finishing three yards in front of second place Poland; with his running start, Hayes covers his 100 meters in an incredible 8.6 seconds), Women's 80m hurdles (over six minutes is used in this segment; the women from eight different countries are shown individually preparing for the start of this race; the main race is without sound as many athletes are isolated on screen; the sound of the crowd is introduced at the finish and Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" is played over the German national anthem to honor the race winner, Karin Balzer, during the awards ceremony), Men's marathon (nearly 25 minutes, the longest segment in this film, required 59 cameramen to capture this closing Olympic event; Abebe Bikila from Ethiopia is framed by a half million spectators, who lined the highway on this out and back course, as he seeks to be the first man to win consecutive Olympic marathons, even though his appendix was removed just four weeks prior to this event; he is chased by a variety of athletes including Ron Clarke from Australia, James Hogan from Ireland, Ron Hill from England, Antonio Ambu from Italy, Kokichi Tsuburaya from Japan, Brian Kilby from England, Jozsef Suetoe from Hungary, Leonard Edelen from the United States of America, Vanden Driessche from Belgium, and many others; watch the men complete this event and greet one another, as well as memorable shots of their feet as they cool down from their ordeal). Ichikawa states in his interview: "All the runners finished the race driven by a sense of purpose. I saw noble and magnificent qualities in each of them". Special bonus material is featured in the Criterion Collection DVD that includes a 32 minute interview with the director, Kon Ichikawa from 1992. Also, use the menu to listen to the exquisitely executed commentary by film scholar and Olympic expert Peter Cowie. He inserts historical perspective to the events and athletes and brings the viewer forward to include Olympic competition through the 2000 Sydney Games. The 40-page book (it is hardly an insert) that accompanies the DVD discusses the controversy of the artistic value, ability to document events, and the portrayal of Tokyo to the rest of the world. This film had been edited into a variety of versions in attempt to please various opinions, yet the 170 minute original widescreen edition is the best way to experience this epic film.
