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| Tony Rayns in Bologna in 2018 |
Il Cinema Ritrovato joins the international film community in mourning the great British film critic, historian, programmer, and lifelong champion of Asian cinema, Tony Rayns, whose passing was announced today.
Tony Rayns was the author of landmark books on Rainer Werner Fassbinder, In the Mood for Love, and Kenji Mizoguchi. His final book, published in 2024, was Just Like Starting Over: A Personal View of the Reinvention of Korean Cinema.
Since the 1970s, Rayns played a decisive role in the international recognition of Asian cinema and in transforming the Western world's understanding of films produced across Asia beyond Japan. His influence has been profound and culturally significant—something repeatedly acknowledged by generations of Asian filmmakers, some of whom insisted that only Rayns should prepare the English subtitles for their films.
