Eclipse Series 13: Kenji Mizoguchi’s Fallen Women (1936-1956)

Over the course of a three-decade, more than eighty film career, master cineaste Kenji Mizoguchi (Ugetsu, Sansho the Bailiff) would return again and again to one abiding theme: the plight of women in Japanese society. In these four lacerating works of social consciousness—two prewar (Osaka Elegy, Sisters of the Gion), two postwar (Women of the Night, Street of Shame)—Mizoguchi introduces an array of compelling female protagonists, crushed or resilient, who are forced by their conditions and culture into compromising positions. With Mizoguchi’s visual daring and eloquence, these films are as cinematically thrilling as they are politically rousing.

Criterion
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A critical and popular triumph, Osaka Elegy established Mizoguchi as one of Japan’s major filmmakers. The director's often-used leading actress Isuzu Yamada stars as Ayoko, a switchboard operator trapped in a compromising, ruinous relationship with her boss to help support her wastrel father. With its fluid cinematography and deft storytelling, Osaka Elegy ushered in a new era of sound melodrama for Mizoguchi.

IMDB

Two of the entries here were released in 1936. The first is Osaka Elegy, which tells the tale of a young switchboard operator named Ayako (Isuzu Yamada). Ayako's father is suffering financially, and Ayako desperately wants to help him. She is so desperate to do so that she will even prostitute herself to her boss in order to make a little extra money. The film examines the hypocritical attitude toward women in Japanese society and works rather effectively as a drama and a comedy. No, the film is not subtle, but I admired the contrasting tones at work here. The comic side centers on Ayako's boss, who panics when he is caught cheating by his wife. Sure, the situation is embarrassing, but the man's reputation is left intact. His male friends do not scold him, but rather pat him on the back and offer their sympathies. Meanwhile, poor Ayako's story plays out as a drama, with her life slowly slipping toward ruin in numerous ways.

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Sisters of the Gion follows the parallel paths of the independent, unsentimental Omocha (Isuzu Yamada) and her sister, the more tradition-minded Umekichi (Yoko Umemura), both geishas in the working-class district of Gion. Mizoguchi's film is a brilliantly shot, uncompromising look at the forces that keep many women at the bottom rung of the social ladder.

IMDB

The second entry from 1936 is Sisters of the Gion, which was largely made with the same cast and crew. The film focuses on two sisters who make a living in the geisha profession. The dominant sister is Omacha (Isuzu Yamada again), a strong and fiercely independent woman with a general disdain for men and much of humanity in general. She is by all means her own person, unafraid of doing or saying whatever she pleases. Omacha's quiet and disapproving sister is Umekichi (Yoko Umemura), who is a far less controversial individual. The two both approach their profession in a manner that reflects their personality. Umekichi is loyal and kind to the men she services, while Omacha is constantly attempting to betray her clients in one way or another. The film does not really take sides or suggest that one approach is more effective than the other. In fact, it suggests that both approaches are doomed, which is unsurprising considering the title of this collection. The film is perhaps a bit subtler and more effective than Osaka Elegy, and manages to pack quite an emotional punch despite a scant running time of only 69 minutes. Omocha's heartrending speech at this film's conclusion is perhaps the most powerful moment of the entire collection.

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After World War II, Mizoguchi was inspired by Italian neorealism to make one of the most emotionally and visually raw films of his career. Filmed on location in Osaka, Women of the Night concerns two sisters—Fusako, a war widow, and Natsuko, having an affair with a narcotics smuggler—who along with their younger friend Kumiko descend into prostitution and moral chaos amid the postwar devastation surrounding them.

IMDB

Next, we fast forward 12 years later to 1948's Women of the Night, a gritty examination of prostitution. The film is visually rougher than the others in the collection, largely because Mizoguchi was forced to use rather poor equipment. Mizoguchi viewed this liability as an asset, as it permitted him to create a film in the Italian neorealist style that he had come to admire so much. We follow several young women as a post-war life of poverty slowly forces them into prostitution. Like the other films, this one is a slow-burning descent that carefully builds to an emotionally intense and gripping social statement at the conclusion. In this case, one could argue that the conclusion is a bit over-the-top, but it's filmed in such a compelling and heartfelt manner that I fell for it. A brief essay found inside the case reveals that Mizoguchi would later dismiss the film as "barbarous." Despite this, I still find it a reasonably effective and touching piece of socially conscious filmmaking.

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For his final film, Mizoguchi brought a lifetime of experience to bear on the heartbreaking tale of a brothel full of women whose dreams are constantly being shattered by the socioeconomic realities surrounding them. Set in Tokyo’s Red Light District (the literal translation of the Japanese title), Street of Shame was so cutting, and its popularity so great, that when an antiprostitution law was passed in Japan just a few months after the film's release, some said it was a catalyst.

IMDB

Finally, we have Street of Shame, which turned out to be the final film of Mizoguchi's career. The film contains a level of wisdom and self-control that is missing from the other three films included here. I am not saying that the other films are not good…in fact, I find all of them more effective on a purely emotional level. However, Street of Shame is perhaps a more persuasive argument about the horrors of prostitution, simply because it takes a calmer and less melodrama-driven approach to things. In fact, there are even moments here when Mizoguchi tentatively acknowledges the complexity of the situation, quietly hinting that some women may even be better off in such a life. An interesting fact to note: the film was influential in helping pass an anti-prostitution law in Japan. Socially-minded filmmakers of today should bear that in mind when making films they hope will make some sort of difference. In many cases, taking a fair-minded and even-handed approach while gently demonstrating your point may prove far more effective than charging into the room with both barrels blazing.

DVDVerdict

All of the films have a sad inevitability to them. Despite the fact that nothing here comes as a real surprise, the power of Mizoguchi's social statements is considerable, particularly when these films are viewed together. That sense of heartbreaking repetition is really quite moving, as we see many women slowly crumbling into utter despondence. There is a scene in Osaka Elegy in which a young woman asks her fiancé, "Would you forgive me for something, no matter what it was?" The fiancé smiles and replies, "Of course!" We all know full well that his tone will change when he hears what she has done, even if he would demand to be excused for doing the exact same thing. Though these films are obviously a product of their time, there's still a lack of equality in the attitudes we have about sexuality. When a man sleeps with a lot of women, he is a playboy. When a woman sleeps with a lot of men, she is a whore. The lack of fairness and logic behind the thought process that inspired such standards is something that obviously concerned Mizoguchi deeply. The deep level of feeling that runs through these films elevates a collection of relatively minor works from a notable director into an affecting four-part statement.

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Download:

Scans

http://www.filesonic.com/file/1750295731/Ecl13.Mizoguchi.Scans.rar
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Filesonic

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