Gan

Let me say from the outset that there is not much in the way of Hideko Takamine films with English subtitles or dubbing. She was one of Japan's greatest actresses, only rivaled to me by Setsuko Hara. I watched the English dubbed version of this film, which was fine, but not advisable. Better to get the subtitled version (if it exists), it seems more natural. That being said, the film is great. Its all about a lady Otoma (Ms. Takamine) becoming a mistress, rather than the wife, of a money lender. He is actually next to a loan shark. She gets her own place, but the money lenders wife finds out about this arrangement and is, of course, upset. Otoma also seems to like a student who helps her, and it is apparent she'd be happier with him, but that may be a dead end. This film is complex, but the use of shadows is a great idea. The mood of the film rarely waivers, and makes for a consistently rewarding, if not actually happy, film. Hideko Takamine, with her pretty doe eyes and beautiful face, lights up any film she is in. The only films I know off the top of my head that have English subtitles of hers are "When A Woman Ascends The Stairs", "Twenty Four Eyes" and "Carmen Comes Home" (Japan's first color film. The sequel "Carmen Finds Love" isn't even available-yet-on DVD). So, watch any Hideko Takamine film while you can. They are all rewarding (the above listed films). This film is a very worthy addition to watch, but check if you can get a subtitle version, rather than the dubbed version. Long may you run, beautiful Ms. Hideko Takamine.

The flow of films showing the hard lives of women, and the position they are put in, were at their height in 1950s Japan, and this is without a doubt a standout. Hideko Takamine and character actor Eijirô Tôno are stunning as the kept and the keeper. She, accepting the role of mistress, he, the hated moneylender, barely keeping the illusions which made her accept.

Toyoda's direction is strong, and almost fearless. At times he goes even darker and deeper than most peers, leaving us to study "Otama", and see her self respect slowly fade away. The films only flaw is it's occasional lack of subtlety where it feels like the characters just "had to" voice what we should (and usually already are) feeling - but these occasions are luckily rare. I might also have enjoyed it even more without the introduction of a slight sense of hope, but it's harshness and melancholy is still very much there, in almost every moment.

In fact there is at most time a sense of crassness, especially when Tôno is on the screen. Each gesture, each act, each line. You can genuinely feel why he is despised by the people around him, and this without him ever being overtly cruel, something he brilliantly would be the first to point out.

Toyoda had a brilliant eye for detail, and managed to do things they sometimes even had a hard time doing, such as letting every single character, no matter how small, shine in their own way, and be truly worth remembering. Even more incredibly, no one steals the spotlight away from Otame. Each event, each character, they all reflect upon her story, and often adds a further layer to her prison.

In late Meiji Japan, a young woman whose reputation had been sullied by being tricked into a false marriage is again deceived, this time into becoming the mistress of a 'widowed owner of a kimono-shop' (Eijiro Tono), only to discover that his is actually a detested money-lender with a living, and resentful, wife. The story is touching and melancholy and Hideko Takamine is outstanding as Otama, a wistful young woman who slowly realises that, as the 'kept woman' of a hated man, she has become a pariah. The rest of cast is excellent (Miki Odagiri is quite funny as Otama's sometimes exuberant maid) and the black-and white cinematography is moody and perfect for the story. Like many Japanese films of the era, cultural transition is a dominant trope. Otama always wears a kimono and keeps her hair in an ornate traditional style, while her 'master' frequently wears Western-style business attire, and the young medical student (Hiroshi Akutagawa) that Otama becomes infatuated with, dreams of travelling to Europe to train as a doctor. Tranquil, sad, and beautiful. Best watched on a quiet evening with a nice bottle of saké. *watched as 'The Wild Geese' with English sub-titles.

(1953) The Wild Geese/ Gan (In Japanese with English subtitles) DRAMA/ CHARACTER STUDY

Adapted from the novel by Ogai Mori, that has an elder lady, Oshige attempting to set up a single and rather young, Otama (Hideko Takamine) with a date with her loan shark, in exchange for him to forgive the loan. At the same time Oshige continues to remind her that her impoverished dad's health is waning, and at some point may not be able to continue to sell penny candy anymore. By the time, Oshige manages to convince Otami for a meet and greet, it turns out, he Suezô, (Eijirô Tôno) is a much older man, and that his occupation is really a money lender, often loathed by the community because of his interest rates. Contradicting what was told to her about him, that he owns a kimono shop, and that despite having him having children, he has no wife at all because she is deceased. Otami, of course eventually finds out about this after already accepting lavish gifts and a better home, including a housekeeper. She also finds out that her dad also knows about it as well, but chose not to say anything, she at this point begin to accept the term of her being his "mistress". Creating conflict within herself as she becomes accustomed to be attracted to a student who walks past her house daily, we find out he is a student, Mr Okada (Hiroshi Akutagawa) studying to be a doctorate. And he too depends on the loan shark, Suezô, some people often call "the master".

What I like about this movie is it's subtleties in terms of it's approach that does not need to be graphic, but is shown instead many implications, both from Otama's point of view as well as her father to other's that have their own selfish reasons the reason why some have done the things each of them have done.

Unspeakably beautiful, delicate and immutable. There is no weakness in the chain of imagery, the power of forces controlling the lives of the characters, painted on the screen like calligraphy. Necessity cages the characters in images as simple as a bird threatened by a snake, to the money lender once janitor to the kept woman generous to her servant to the cruelty of the wagging tongues. Nothing here a traditional American audience demands and receives from Hollywood; only the lucidity of the haiku or bonsai, the migration of the wild geese. Cinematic perfection.