Own the rights?
This early Kurosawa film might initially seem simply a curiosity in the director's extensive filmography. It is definitely a minor achievement but gradually the movie emerges as a fine demonstration of Kurosawa's storytelling abilities. It is about a doctor (a very young and handsome Toshirô Mifune) that contracts syphilis from a patient he operated. The doctor has to face the stigma that comes with such disease. The film is pure melodrama, very sentimental and high on big emotions and overplayed vignettes. But visually, the film is interesting. Kurosawa's staging (including some interesting use of deep focus photography) is excellent. Mifune's quiet charisma is already visible here (I'm a fan boy of the actor), and Takashi Shimura is very moving as Mifune's loving father; their few scenes together are priceless. Both actors did superior work in subsequent Kurosawa productions, but you can already notice how well these actors fit in the director's universe. Noriko Sengoku steals a few scenes as bitter apprentice nurse. The film is short and its brevity helps. Kurosawa's first masterpiece ("Rashomon") is still a few years ahead but this is a nice warm up for things to come. If you are interested in the director's work, you want to watch it. Regular viewers won't be missing anything special. The new DVD has a few interesting interviews.
You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.
