Three Sisters with Maiden Hearts (1935)
"Otome-gokoro - Sannin-shimai" (original title)

Three sisters earn money for their bossy mother by being samisen street musicians. This means mainly playing a banjo type instrument for tips in bars... See full synopsis »

Director:

Mikio Naruse

Writers:

Yasunari Kawabata (story), Mikio Naruse (adaptation)

Stars:

Chikako Hosokawa, Masako Tsutsumi, Ryuko Umezono

Cast

Cast overview:
Chikako Hosokawa	...	O-Ren
Masako Tsutsumi	...	O-Some
Ryuko Umezono	...	Chieko
Chitose Hayashi	...	Hahaoya - the Mother
Chisato Matsumoto	...	O-Haru, youjo
Masako Sanjo	...	O-Shima, youjo
Mariyo Matsumoto	...	O-Kinu, youjo
Heihachirô Ôkawa	...	Aoyama
Kaoru Itô	...	Wampaku-kozou
Osamu Takizawa	...	Kosugi
Akira Kishii	...	Kyaku - the Guest
Kamatari Fujiwara	...	Yopparai - the Drunkard

Storyline

Three sisters earn money for their bossy mother by being samisen street musicians. This means mainly playing a banjo type instrument for tips in bars... See full synopsis »

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

1 March 1935 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Three Sisters with Maiden Hearts

Filming Locations:

Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Photo Chemical Laboratories, Toho Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min 75 min (35 mm)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

User Reviews

One of the masterworks of early sound

Naruse's THREE SISTERS WITH MAIDEN HEARTS remains one of the most inventive and original early sound films made anywhere; its usage of voice-over, sound effects, and music to amplify the basic narrative is extraordinarily sophisticated. It's also one of Naruse's most poignant films, with its story of three sisters and their travails as traveling musicians. It's very little known, but deserved to be more widely seen. This film is also notable as one of the rare instances when Yasunari Kawabata wrote the original screen story; in 1954, Naruse would adapt Kawabata's novel THE SOUND FROM THE MOUNTAINS, but this early collaboration remains an instance where a distinctive literary sensibility was truly represented on the screen.