Taira Clan Saga (1955)
"Shin heike monogatari" (original title)

Special Forces commander Captain Tadamori returns to Kyoto after successfully defeating the uprising of pirates in the western sea of Japan. But because the high courtiers dislike career ... See full summary »

Director:

Kenji Mizoguchi

Writers:

Masashige Narusawa, Hisakazu Tsuji,

Stars:

Narutoshi Hayashi, Raizô Ichikawa, Tatsuya Ishiguro

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Narutoshi Hayashi	...	Taira Torodai
Raizô Ichikawa	...	Taira Kiyomori
Tatsuya Ishiguro	...	Fujiwara no Tokinobu
Michiyo Kogure	...	Yasuko
Yoshiko Kuga	...	Tokiko
Akitake Kôno	...	Heiroku
Tamao Nakamura	...	Shigeko
Shunji Natsume	...	Emperor Toba
Ichijirô Oya	...	Taira no Tadamori
Mitsusaburô Ramon	...	Ryokan
Kunitaro Sawamura	...	Joku
Koreya Senda
Eitarô Shindô	...	Banboku
Ichirô Sugai	...	Carpenter
Eijirô Yanagi	...	Emperor Shirakawa

Storyline

Special Forces commander Captain Tadamori returns to Kyoto after successfully defeating the uprising of pirates in the western sea of Japan. But because the high courtiers dislike career soldiers gaining power and influence, they ignore the will of ex-Emperor Toba and refuse to reward the captain. Reward recommender Lord Tokinobu is punished, and the captain sends his son Kiyomori to the Lord's residence, where he falls in love with Tokiko, the Lord's daughter. Meanwhile, Kiyomori finds out that he is possibly the ex-Emperor's son...

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | infidelity | courtesan | court

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

21 September 1955 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Taira Clan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Kenji Mizoguchi: The Life of a Film Director (1975)

User Reviews

A Great Near-epic From Mizoguchi

Quite different from most Mizoguchi - there isn't a female protagonist here - TAIRA CLAN SAGA (aka 'Shin Heike Monogatari') is a vivid period spectacle, perhaps most similar to his earlier masterpiece THE 47 RONIN. Working closer to Kurosawa territory, TAIRA CLAN SAGA depicts the tension between the corrupt court and the military class. Ethics, honor and loyalty are central themes, and Mizo's graceful style underscores this in classic fashion. While not quite the equal of Mizo's celebrated string of early-50s masterpieces, this is still a great film - very rarely seen in the US, and very much deserving of restoration and a wider audience. Fans of Kurosawa, Inagaki or Kobayashi's period epics would do well to seek this out.