is a 1958 Japanese

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Mikio Naruse was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 89 films spanning the period 1930 to 1967. Naruse is known for imbuing his films with a bleak and pessimistic outlook. He made primarily Shoshimin-eiga, shōshimin-eiga ("common people drama") films with f ...

. It is based on a novel by Saisei Murō.

Plot

Kyōko, daughter of successful writer Hirayama, rejects several marriage prospects before taking Ryōkichi, owner of a small used book store, as her husband. A few years into the marriage, Kyōko has to start selling parts of the household, as the manuscripts of Ryōkichi, who is ambitious to become a novelist, keep getting returned by publishers. Yagihara, a magazine editor and acquaintance of Hirayama, outspokenly tells Ryōkichi that his work lacks originality and an elaborate style. Kyōko suggests that Ryōkichi shows his manuscripts to her father, but he declines, arguing that it is Hirayama's overpowering presence which hinders him in his writing. Ryōkichi's behaviour becomes increasingly erratic due to his drinking, and the couple's financial and emotional situation worsens. Kyōko repeatedly leaves her home to stay at her father's place, but insists that a divorce is the final resort. When Kyōko again returns to Ryōkichi, the mother asks Hirayama if they shouldn't split up. Hirayama replies, only when Kyōko comes home exhausted and can't go on anymore, the time to split up has come.

Cast

Sō Yamamura , sometimes credited as Satoshi Yamamura, was a Japanese actor and film director. Biography Yamamura was born Koga Hirosada in Tenri, Nara Prefecture, and graduated from the University of Tokyo. In 1942, Yamamura and Isao Yamagata formed the B ...

as Heishiro Hirayama *

Kyōko Kagawa is a Japanese actress. During her career spanning 70 years, she has worked with directors like Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi, Yasujirō Ozu and Mikio Naruse, appearing in films such as ''Tokyo Story'', ''Sansho the Bailiff'', '' The Bad Sleep W ...

as Kyōko *

Isao Kimura , sometimes credited as Kō Kimura, was a Japanese stage and film actor who appeared in more than one hundred films of directors such as Akira Kurosawa, Mikio Naruse, Tadashi Imai and Yoshishige Yoshida. Biography Kimura was born in Hiroshima C ...

as Ryōkichi, Kyōko's husband *

Shizue Natsukawa was a Japanese stage and film actress who appeared in works of directors Kenji Mizoguchi, Shirō Toyoda and Keisuke Kinoshita. Biography Natsukawa was born in Tokyo and first appeared on stage at the age of seven. She gave her film debut in ''T ...

as Rieko, Hirayama's wife * Hiroshi Tachikawa as Heinosuke, Hirayama's son *

Chieko Nakakita was a Japanese actress. She appeared in the early films of Akira Kurosawa and later starred in many films by Mikio Naruse. Biography After graduating from Tokyo Film School (東京映画学校), Chieko Nakakita entered the Toho film studios an ...

as Sumiko Urushiyama * Mina Mitsui as Risako Yamamoto *

Nobuo Nakamura was a Japanese stage and film actor, who appeared in many films by Akira Kurosawa, Yasujirō Ozu and Mikio Naruse. Biography A graduate from Tokyo Kaisei Junior High School, Nakamura studied at the Kawabata School of Painting. After the rejecti ...

as Toshio Yagihara *

Keiju Kobayashi was a Japanese actor who appeared in 253 films in a career spanning 67 years. Born in Gunma Prefecture, he began acting at the Nikkatsu studio after dropping out of Nihon University and made his film debut in 1942. In 1956 he moved to Toho film ...

as Tayama *

Daisuke Katō was a Japanese actor. He appeared in over 200 films, including Akira Kurosawa's ''Seven Samurai'', ''Rashomon'', ''Yojimbo'', and ''Ikiru''. He also worked repeatedly for noted directors such as Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse and Kenji Mizoguchi. ...

as Suga, the poet *

Natsuko Kahara was a Japanese stage and film actress. She was a member of the Bungakuza theatre company and regularly appeared in the films of director Mikio Naruse. During her 50 years spanning career, she also worked for directors such as Yasujirō Ozu, Akir ...

as Enko Murai *

Sadako Sawamura was a Japanese stage and film actress who appeared in more than 200 films between 1935 and 1976. Biography Sawamura was born Sadako Katō in the Asakusa district of Tokyo. After dropping out of Japan Women's University, she was active in left-w ...

as Mrs. Hatoi *

Kenji Sahara Kenji Sahara (佐原健二 ''Sahara Kenji'') (born 14 May 1932) is a Japanese actor. He was born in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa. His birth name is Masayoshi Kato (加藤正好 ''Katō Masayoshi''). Initially he used the name Tadashi Ishihara bef ...

as Mrs. Hatoi's son * Hiroshi Hayashi as Dr. Sato *

Minoru Chiaki was a Japanese actor who appeared in eleven of Akira Kurosawa's films, including ''Rashomon'', ''Seven Samurai'', ''Throne of Blood'', and ''The Hidden Fortress''. He was also one of Kon Ichikawa's favorite actors. He attended, but did not grad ...

as Saburo Yoshida * Teruko Mita as Sachiko Yoshida *

Yoshio Tsuchiya was a Japanese actor who appeared in such films as Toshio Matsumoto's surreal ''Bara No Soretsu'' (a.k.a. '' Funeral Parade of Roses'') and Akira Kurosawa's ''Seven Samurai'' (as the firebrand farmer Rikichi) and '' Red Beard'', and Kihachi Okam ...

as Ishima *

Yū Fujiki , born , was a Japanese film and television actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1954 to 2005. Career Born in Tokyo, Fujiki graduated from Doshisha University and joined the Toho studio in 1954. He began by playing straight male leads, ...

as Okada

Reception

In his 2005 review for ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...

'', Keith Uhlich called ''Anzukko'' "a loving portrait of a woman tragically caught between her wants and her responsibilities, fated to tread a potentially never-ending path between the trials of her marriage and the refuge of her past."

References

External links

* {{Mikio Naruse 1958 films 1958 drama films Japanese drama films Japanese black-and-white films Films based on Japanese novels Films directed by Mikio Naruse Toho films 1950s Japanese films