More Japan

OSAKA ELEGY-1936-Ayako (Isuzu Yamada; later in films by Kurosawa), a young woman who works as a phone operator for big pharmaceutical company lives with her younger sister and deadbeat father who'd been caught embezzling money from the company he used to work for. To raise the money to pay back the company, she leaves home and reluctantly becomes her boss's mistress. After the boss's wife catches them together a couple of times they break up. An ex-office co-worker Susumu wants to marry her but instead she becomes the mistress to another married man and sends money to her self-serving brother but her father steals it for himself. So she and Susumu can get married she tricks another married man into giving her money but he calls the cops and has her arrested. Dumped by her intended and ostracized by her stupid family Ayako goes off by herself (to prostitution? homelessness? a better life?). 

Interesting, well acted and directed early film (and first hit) from Japan's Kenji Mizoguchi (UGETSU, SANSHO THE BAILIFF). Takashi Shimura, the character actor later in GODZILLA and many films by Kurosawa has a small role.

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