Sansho the Bailiff

Unrated

9/14/19552h 4m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ Without mercy, man is like a beast. ~

Overview:

In medieval Japan, a woman and her children journey to find the family's patriarch, who was exiled years earlier.

Director:

Kenji Mizoguchi

Status:

Released

Language:

Japanese

Buget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Key words:

governor
japan
courtesan
exile
banishment
prostitution
compassion
based on short story
decree
mercy
feudal japan
11th century
ancient japan

Cast

Kinuyo Tanaka

~ as ~

Tamaki

Yoshiaki Hanayagi

~ as ~

Zushiô

Kyōko Kagawa

~ as ~

Anju

Eitarō Shindō

~ as ~

Sanshô dayû

Ichirō Sugai

~ as ~

Minister of Justice

Bontarō Miake

~ as ~

Kichiji

Yōko Kozono

~ as ~

Kohagi

Chieko Naniwa

~ as ~

Ubatake

Kikue Mōri

~ as ~

Priestess

Ken Mitsuda

~ as ~

Prime Minister Fujiwara

View full cast & crew

Reviews (1)

CinemaSerf
Written 2 year(s) ago
7
When a benign provincial governor tries to intervene to protect his people from the brutality of the military, he is stripped of his rank and banished. His wife and children are forced to follow him, on foot, some time later and hopelessly ill-equipped for that task they fall prey to people traffickers who split the family up. The young daughter and son soon find themselves bought by the eponymous character and forced into cruel manual labour that only his son "Taro" (Akitake Kôno) seems at all concerned about. Can he help? Can they manage to keep some semblance of their erstwhile decency and nobility in the face of such indifference and oppression? Will the family ever reconcile? This is a glorious film to look at. The photography is dark, gloomy and hugely effective at eliciting a feeling of sorrow for the children as they struggle to survive in their new lives. There are glimmers of optimism, but Kenji Mizoguchi manages our expectations well. There is no yellow brick road here, the sunlit uplands are definitely there but we have no idea when (or if) one or other or neither of the children may ever reach them. The acting is poised and characterful - especially the young "Anju" (Kyôko Kagawa) who tries to look out for her initially weak and vulnerable younger brother "Zushio" (Yoshiaki Hanayagi). It is beautifully scored with a mixture of Japanese and classical themes that compliment well the contrasting images of poverty, wealth, cruelty and kindness of this story of barbarity and revenge. The cinematography does benefit from a big screen - it makes the story and the imagery all the more impactful, but even on a television this is is two hours that truly keeps you gripped.