The resonance of a gong sounds off the opening credits followed by a bone-chillingly abstract tune—a tune composed by flutes and drums that occasionally incorporates agonizing groans.  The combined musical impression of the tune generates an eerie lingering atmosphere.  It is also Mizoguchi’s intension, as he simply wants to induce the harrowing experience of war and suffering.

In the initial scene, the camera sweeps the story back in time through the left panning shot that displays a serene rural area at Lake Biwa in the Omi province.  Slowly the camera continues to slide left, as it pans by some large bushes that functions like a natural divider between the countryside and the emerging scenery of a rock formation.  At first, the scenery of the tranquil and sunny countryside offers a notion of peace and happiness.  The time of peace allowed the common people to go about their daily lives without the concern of wealth, expansionism, and safety.  However, the appearance of the rock formation symbolically prompts the notion of unsafe and testing times, as a ladder also leans against the rock formation.  Furthermore, the ladder’s presence offers an analogous opportunity to recognize its symbolic value of advancement and progress in a period of uneasiness.  One thing the ladder does not show is where it ends.  Thus, it is conceivably possible to imagine that one does not know where progress could end. It is a notion that should serve as an ominous warning in combination with the threatening score in the beginning.

Amidst the panning motion of the camera, Mizoguchi adds a brief, almost subliminal, shot of the seaside front of a large island with a storm brewing above.  Tangibly, it has no meaning with the scene, but it carries a compelling symbolical value, as the threatening storm leaves an imprint in the mind.  Aesthetically, it could lead the thoughts to the concept of Sturm und Drang, an interpretation that offers a subjective perspective on the present situation with a strong emphasis on the apprehension of the moment, which is very appropriate as a war is brewing in the background.  Yet, after the subconsciously inserted visual, the film fades back into reality and the story can now begin its doomed course.

Without delay, Mizoguchi introduces the main characters, the pot maker Genjurô (Masayuki Mori) and his wife Miyagi (Kinuyo Tanaka), who holds their child Genichi, as the family prepares for the husband’s departure to sell their latest batch of pots.  Despite the scenes conciseness, it succeeds to illustrate all of the vital aspects of the common Japanese family core.  For example, the subordinate part of a wife, the man’s role as a breadwinner, and the importance of the future portrayed through a little boy.  The succinct presentation to Genjurô also allows Mizoguchi to introduce additional apprehension, as the pottery family worries about the war, an execution of some spies, and the possible threat of lawless soldiers.

The scene continues with a brief cut within the scene that introduces the second couple: the peasant Tobei (Eitarô Ozawa) and his wife Ohama (Mitsuko Mito).  Tobei often find himself preoccupied with his lofty aspirations and dreams of the opportunity to seize prestige, fortune, and influence.  He also believes that the looming war provides a terrific chance for him to fulfill his desire to succeed as a samurai.  Meanwhile, Ohama ridicules his ambition for glory and power.  Maybe, she does it because he does not possess any of the seven virtues of Bushido required for a samurai, but most likely it is because he will probably only get himself killed.  Despite her attempts to sway him not to seek to fulfill his ambitions, Tobei tries to find a solution to his desires for high status and wealth.

Both men set out together, but with different objectives.  When they later return Genjurô is the first to arrive home, as he has profitably achieved his goal.  He has made a small fortune with which he has been able to acquire some lavish treats for his wife.  However, she is more pleased to see that he has returned safely, but is still appreciative of the gifts.  Tobei’s return is fruitless in comparison to Genjurô’s, as his homecoming is that of a starved three-legged puppy with the tail between his legs.

The lucrative business excursion has allowed Genjurô a brief taste of wealth that in turn has set off an increasing need for more.  Helplessly Miyagi observes the change within Genjurô, as greed has clutched a firm grip over his character.  To increase his profits he hires Tobei, as Tobei also sees opportunity for his ambitions.  However, in their feverish effort to gain happiness, or at least what they think is happiness, they lose perspective of reality and the dangers that lurk around their families in a time of war.  Eventually Genjurô and Tobei set off to gain their riches and desires, as the leave their women stranded alone in a land that suffers from war, starvation, and famine.  Their quest becomes an evil dance with death and infatuation with their cravings, as they loose themselves to their own obsessions within the war.

Through lengthy and distant shots Mizoguchi exposes the characters within their social setting, which accentuates the acts within the moment.  In the process, the audience is allowed to see Mizoguchi’s vision for how the ordinary people must have suffered, but also the character’s actions with the environment.  It is an artistic journey from the opening shot until the final frame, as everything that Mizoguchi illustrates in the film has a significant purpose.  Nothing seems to have been left to chance, as it clearly becomes his vision of how people suffered during the civil wartimes of 16th century Japan.  In addition, he accentuates each character’s individual personality through their fate that rests within their actions.  In the end, Mizoguchi accomplishes his goal to envision war’s affect on ordinary people, which allows the viewer to ponder the aftermath of war and the individual choices of mankind.

DIRECTED BY

COUNTRY

Japan

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