Gate of Hell (1953)
"Jigokumon" (original title)

In 1159, during an attempted coup, one of the court's ladies in waiting disguises herself as the lord's wife, and a loyal samurai conveys her from the city. This diversion allows the royal ... See full summary »

Director:

Teinosuke Kinugasa

Writers:

Kan Kikuchi (play), Teinosuke Kinugasa,

Stars:

Kazuo Hasegawa, Machiko Kyô, Isao Yamagata

Won 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kazuo Hasegawa	...	Moritoh Enda
Machiko Kyô	...	Lady Kesa
Isao Yamagata	...	Wataru Watanabe
Yataro Kurokawa	...	Shigemori
Kôtarô Bandô	...	Rokuroh
Jun Tazaki	...	Kogenta
Koreya Senda	...	Gen Kiyomori
Masao Shimizu	...	Nobuyori
Tatsuya Ishiguro	...	Yachuta
Kenjiro Uemura	...	Masanaka
Gen Shimizu	...	Saburosuke
Michiko Araki	...	Mano
Yoshie Minami	...	Tone
Kikue Môri	...	Sawa
Ryôsuke Kagawa	...	Yasutada

Storyline

In 1159, during an attempted coup, one of the court's ladies in waiting disguises herself as the lord's wife, and a loyal samurai conveys her from the city. This diversion allows the royal family to escape. After the coup fails, the samurai asks his lord to let him marry the woman as his reward. The lord grants the request and then discovers she is already married to one of the ruling family's lieges. The samurai clings to his desire, importuning her to leave her husband, then challenging the husband to release her. Although the husband stays calm and she stays faithful, the samurai remains intemperate and stubborn, with tragic consequences.

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | desire | lady in waiting | lust | guilt | 

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Taglines:

The Most Honored Screen Import in a Decade!

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

10 December 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gate of Hell

Filming Locations:

Daiei Tokyo Studios, Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Visa de contrôle cinématographique France : #15760(subtitled version) or #15760/D (dubbed version).

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Crazy Credits

Janus Films' re-subtitled version, prepared for video releases, translates Kazuo Hasegawa's name as "Cazuo Hasegawa."

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Connections

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007)

User Reviews

A immortal masterpiece

Some thirty years ago, I was lucky enough to see this film in Paris. We left the theatre well past midnight and we were marvelling at the intensity of the movie. Black and white version, Japanese with subtitles. Uneasy, one would say. Yet, it gave us and still gives me so many years later a wonderful feeling of beauty. Roughly following the script of the French novel 'Princesse of Cleves', it describes the tragedy of being faithful to one's oath. Married and intending to stay true to her husband, the heroine refuses the loving entreaties of the samurai who saved her life. Realizing that she will stay with her husband though she may have only feelings of friendship toward said spouse,the hero decides to 'free' her by killing said husband. Naturally, this being a Stoicism tragedy: The husband discovers belatedly his wife really loves/loved him, the samurai discovers too late that been faithful comes with a price etc etc...

It is beauty, pure beauty. Such a change from nowadays ridiculous re-writings like some coming blockbusters.