The Life of Oharu
西鶴一代女
1952JapanLanguage: jaDirected by Kenji Mizoguchi★ 7.7
Available in English: subtitled
During the Edo Period, a noblewoman's banishment for her love affair with a lowly page signals the beginning of her inexorable fall.
Themes and style
Tone
bleakmelancholichauntingquietly devastating
Pacing
slow burnepisodicescalating
Story
unravelingjourneysurvival
Emotion
griefshamefeeling powerlessloss of innocencelonging
Themes
class and moneymen and women navigating expectationsfamily wounds passed downfamily dutylife under oppression
Feel
emotionally wreckingquietly hauntingcerebraldiscussion starter
Violence
suggestive