The Surf (1954)
"Shiosai" (original title)

Lonely youth Shinji meets Hatsue, a pretty pearl diver, on the beach and the two fall in love. But Shinji has a rival for Hatsue's affections, Yasuo. Yasuo spreads unpleasant gossip about ... See full summary »

Director:

Senkichi Taniguchi

Writers:

Yukio Mishima (novel), Shinichirô Nakamura,

Stars:

Akira Kubo, Sadako Sawamura, Minoru Takashima

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Akira Kubo	...	Shinji
Sadako Sawamura	...	Tomi, Shinji's Mother
Minoru Takashima	...	Hiroshi
Kyôko Aoyama	...	Hatsue
Kichijirô Ueda	...	Terukichi, Hatsue's Father
Keiko Miya	...	Chiyoko
Daisuke Katô	...	Chiyoko's Father, the lighthouse keeper
Sue Mitobe	...	Chiyoko's Mother
Hiroshi Tachikawa	...	Yasuo (as Yoichi Tachikawa)
Wataru Ômae	...	Takeshi
Yoshio Kosugi	...	Jukichi
Ikichi Ishii	...	Ryuji
Toshirô Mifune	...	Skipper of the Utashima-maru
Noriko Honma	...	Old Woman of O-Haru
Eijirô Tôno	...	Schoolmaster, a peddler

Storyline

Lonely youth Shinji meets Hatsue, a pretty pearl diver, on the beach and the two fall in love. But Shinji has a rival for Hatsue's affections, Yasuo. Yasuo spreads unpleasant gossip about his rival, and Hatsue's father forbids her to see Shinji. But when the boy saves the passengers on a boat owned by Hatsue's father, his luck in love begins to change.

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Plot Keywords:

based on novel

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

3 May 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Surf

Filming Locations:

Irakozaki, Mie, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Toho Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Connections

Version of Shiosai (1985)

User Reviews

Ah! Young Love.

It would be all to easy to dismiss Sound Of Waves as a clichéd teen romance. There's the troubled young hero, the pretty and giddy young girl, the rival, the other girl, the girl's grumpy rich father, and the gossipy villagers. There are trials, misunderstandings, loss of faith in each other.

There is a measure of substance as well. Being set in a fishing village, the sea and the weather are major characters. The hero's relationship with the sea, and with his mother and young brother, are heartfelt and touching.

The story somehow manages to be both innocent and raunchy. The young couple (eventually) frolic around with innocent abandon, yet this only occurs after a scene where the girl, soaked by a storm on the way to meet the boy, strips down to her underpants, and is drying her skirt, held carefully in front, when the boy wakes up and gets a bit excited. Things don't go too far, and the girl admits she does want to marry him. However, news of the encounter spreads, and the other girl and the rival cooperate in creating a rumour that things did get too hot, and of course the gossip mills churns overtime.

So, what if this is somewhat clichéd and, apart from a couple of surprises, predictable ? It is still quite enjoyable.