Occupied Territories

The only thing that remained the same, no matter the film or the benshi, were the characters’ names in foreign films. The heroine was almost always Mary, the hero was Jim, and the villain was usually called Robert. Even in historical dramas there would come riding a chivalrous knight in shining armor called Jim.

—

Joseph L. Anderson and Donald Richie, The Japanese Film: Art and Industry (1960)

I have just started reading Anderson and Richie’s book, and already, only a few pages in, it is awesome.