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Sansho the Bailiff

1954-03-31 Drama 2hr 4m

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

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Sansho the Bailiff
Criterion Channel

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Storyline

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

  • Released
    1954-03-31
  • Revenue
    n/a
  • Budget
    n/a
  • Runtime
    2hr 4m
  • Genre
    Drama
  • Status
    Released
  • Language
    日本語
  • imdb-logo
    8.4
  • Production
    Daiei Film

Crew

Kenji Mizoguchi
Director
Yoshikata Yoda
Screenplay
Masaichi Nagata
Producer
Keywords:
governor japan courtesan exile banishment prostitution compassion based on short story decree mercy feudal japan 11th century ancient japan

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Cast

Kinuyo Tanaka

Kinuyo Tanaka
Tamaki
Yoshiaki Hanayagi

Yoshiaki Hanayagi
Zushiô
Kyōko Kagawa

Kyōko Kagawa
Anju
Eitarō Shindō

Eitarō Shindō
Sanshô dayû
Ichirō Sugai

Ichirō Sugai
Minister of Justice
Bontarō Miake

Bontarō Miake
Kichiji
Yōko Kozono

Yōko Kozono
Kohagi
Chieko Naniwa

Chieko Naniwa
Ubatake
Kikue Mōri

Kikue Mōri
Priestess
Ken Mitsuda

Ken Mitsuda
Prime Minister Fujiwara
Masao Shimizu

Masao Shimizu
Masauji Taira
Ryōsuke Kagawa

Ryōsuke Kagawa
Ritsushi Kumotake
Akitake Kōno

Akitake Kōno
Taro
Kanji Koshiba

Kanji Koshiba
Kaikudo Naito
Shinobu Araki

Shinobu Araki
Sadaya
Masahiko Tsugawa

Masahiko Tsugawa
Young Zushiō
Keiko Enami

Keiko Enami
Young Anju
Teruko Omi

Teruko Omi
Nakagimi
Kimiko Tachibana

Kimiko Tachibana
Namiji
Reiko Kongō

Reiko Kongō
Shiono
Shōzō Nanbu

Shōzō Nanbu
Masasue Taira
Ryōnosuke Azuma

Ryōnosuke Azuma
Landlord
Kazukimi Okuni

Kazukimi Okuni
Norimura
Saburo Date

Saburo Date
Kimpei
Sumao Ishihara

Sumao Ishihara
Yakko
Ichirō Amano

Ichirō Amano
Midori Komatsu

Midori Komatsu
Harbour's Lady
Yukio Horikita

Yukio Horikita
Jiro
Jun Fujikawa

Jun Fujikawa
Kanamaru
Sōji Shibata

Sōji Shibata
Sado Man
Akira Shimizu

Akira Shimizu
Slave Trader
Tokio Oki

Tokio Oki
Harbour's Man
Akira Shiga

Akira Shiga
Farmer #2
Goro Nakanishi

Goro Nakanishi
Hachiro Okuni

Hachiro Okuni
Saburo Miyazaki
Akiyoshi Kikuno

Akiyoshi Kikuno

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Sansho the Bailiff
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Sansho the Bailiff
Sansho the Bailiff

Movie Reviews

Reviews for Sansho the Bailiff
reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 7

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2023-01-04

When a benign provincial governor tries to intervene to protect his people from the brutality of the military, he is stripped of his rank an... read more

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.

Read Full Review (The thoughts and opinions expressed here are solely those of the reviewer.)
A Review by CinemaSerf

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 ...

reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 7

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2023-01-04

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, ...

read more