Ugetsu (1953)

A tale of ambition, family, love, and war set in the midst of the Japanese Civil Wars of the sixteenth century.

Director:

Kenji Mizoguchi

Writers:

Matsutarô Kawaguchi (adaptation), Hisakazu Tsuji (idea) (as Kyûchi Tsuji)

Stars:

Masayuki Mori, Machiko Kyô, Kinuyo Tanaka

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Machiko Kyô	...	Lady Wakasa
Mitsuko Mito	...	Ohama
Kinuyo Tanaka	...	Miyagi
Masayuki Mori	...	Genjurô
Eitarô Ozawa	...	Tôbei (as Sakae Ozawa)
Sugisaku Aoyama	...	Old Priest
Mitsusaburô Ramon	...	Captain of Tamba Soldiers
Ryôsuke Kagawa	...	Village Master
Kichijirô Ueda	...	Shop Owner
Shôzô Nanbu	...	Shintô Priest
Kikue Môri	...	Ukon
Ryûzaburô Mitsuoka	...	Soldier
Ichirô Amano	...	Boatsman
Eigorô Onoe	...	Knight
Saburô Date	...	Vassal

Storyline

In the beginning of the springtime in the period of the Japanese Civil Wars of the Sixteenth Century in Lake Biwa in the Province of Omi, the family man farmer and craftsman Genjurô travels to Nagahama to sell his wares and makes a small fortune. His neighbor Tobei that is a fool man dreams on becoming a samurai, but he can not afford to buy the necessary outfit. The greedy Genjurô and Tobei work together manufacturing clay potteries, expecting to sell the pieces and enrich; however, their wives Miyage and Ohama are worried about the army of the cruel Shibata that is coming to their village and they warn their ambitious husbands. Their village is looted but the families flee and survive; Genjurô and Tobei decide to travel by boat with their wives and baby to sell the wares in a bigger town. When they meet another boat that was attacked by pirates, Genjurô decides to leave his wife and son on the bank of the river, promising to return in ten days. Genjurô, Tobei and Ohama raise a large...

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | civil war | ambition | japan | 16th century | 

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

7 September 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ugetsu

Filming Locations:

Daiei Studios, Tokyo, Japan

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,154, 3 March 2017, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$6,154, 3 March 2017

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ranked number 68 non-English-speaking film in the critics' poll conducted by the BBC in 2018.

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Goofs

After the soldier cuts off the general's head there's no blood on his sword.

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Connections

Referenced in Rewind This! (2013)

User Reviews

Songs and tales

The movie starts out pretty uncomfortably, two peasants in 16th century Japan who dream of richness and glory so blindly, they can't even hear the pretty straight-forward protests of their loving wives who try to convince them that their happiness is fine at home. When one, a pottery smith, makes a small bundle selling his wares, they decide to make a much larger batch together and become rich.

Forced out of their homes by an approaching war and uncertain where to go, they take their wares to a thriving market place, where the second peasant's ambition to be a samurai divides them and causes all four characters, the two peasants and their wives, to be separated, all fending for themselves amongst the war and various classes differently.

At this point the film reverses itself and instead of being a pretty skin-deep, tragic bud of greed, it blooms into a beautiful and haunting tale of obsession and illusion. The two main stories of the peasants and their wives are opposite only in their imaged realism, where one peasant falls completely under the curse of an enchanting ghost and the other lies and steals his way to fame, only both of them are eventually knocked down from their own hubris and forced to finally awaken to what their wives have said all along.

It's quite exquisite, this movie, with its long takes and its lack of the usual constructs that make up messages of obsession and greed. Once it gets beyond the small, uncomfortable, claustrophobic world of the peasant's home, it becomes audaciously challenging and mysterious, so that the same small home becomes amazingly wonderful and comforting. The very essence of the movie is breathed into the emotions of the audience in very subtle ways, making a very unforgettable cinematic experience.

--PolarisDiB