Somewhere Under the Broad Sky

Somewhere Under the Broad Sky is the fifth movie by Masaki Kobayashi, who would later go on to international fame with movies like The Human Condition and Harakiri. Before making such towering masterpieces however, Kobayashi made a number of light dramas about families of which this movie is a good example. Keiji Sata stars as the son (and head) of a somewhat poor family that owns a liquor store. Yoshiko Kuga is his recently married wife who is struggling to fit into the family. The two love each other but she is having a hard time winning over the rest of his family, particularly his embittered and jealous sister (played by the always great Hideko Takamine) who was disfigured during the war. The movie is a very light drama with not very high stakes in the conflict. It's not a great movie, but it is an example of the many good and enjoyable movies coming out of Japan during the 1950's.