IMDb >
Onna ga kaidan wo agaru toki (1960)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsOnna ga kaidan wo agaru toki (1960) More at IMDbPro »
Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
25 June 1963 (USA) morePlot:
This is the story of Mama, a.k.a. Keiko, a middle-aged geisha who must choose to either get married or buy a bar of her own... more | add synopsisUser Comments:
A great filmmaker in search of a plot more (10 total)Cast
(Credited cast)| Hideko Takamine | ... | Keiko Yashiro | |
| Masayuki Mori | ... | Nobuhiko Fujisaki | |
| Reiko Dan | ... | Junko Inchihashi | |
| Tatsuya Nakadai | ... | Kenichi Komatsu, the manager | |
| Daisuke Katô | ... | Matsukichi Sekine | |
| Ganjiro Nakamura | ... | Goda | |
| Eitarô Ozawa | ... | Minobe | |
| Keiko Awaji | ... | Yuri | |
| Jun Tatara | |||
| Yû Fujiki | |||
| Masao Oda | |||
| Ken Mitsuda | |||
| Chikako Hosokawa | |||
| Sadako Sawamura |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
111 minCountry:
JapanLanguage:
JapaneseColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Recording)Filming Locations:
Tokyo, JapanFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (10 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Onna ga kaidan wo agaru toki (1960)Recommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Lost in Translation | Wandâfuru raifu | Tôkyô monogatari | From Here to Eternity | The Pillow Book |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| IMDb Drama section | IMDb Japan section | Add this title to MyMovies |

Compared to Ozu or Mizoguchi, Mikio Naruse's films are much lighter in tone, with more humour, and less of the overwhelming sense of pain and tragedy. Sometimes this works really well, offering stories that are emotionally involving but not morbidly extreme, but in this film I think it results in a film that's shapeless and drifts past the viewer without really going anywhere in particular.
The performances are excellent; of course Hideko Takamine is wonderful in the leading role running a hostess bar, but Reiko Dan is great fun as a young, flirty, ambitious hostess, and Tatsuya Nakadai as the loyal young bar manager is like a hero of the French New Wave, quiet, cool, and intense. Keiko's customers at the bar are to an extent caricatures, but are nicely drawn.
The film offers a full and fair-minded account of the world of hostess bars, with Naruse's usual interest in financial matters and the minutiae of life. But despite the occasional sad event, the cumulative impression is not of a woman in a desperately tragic situation, but more a case of just one damn thing after another. It lurches from moments of high drama to silliness to tragedy to the mundane, failing to achieve a consistent attitude or tone.
There are perhaps too many characters, so that while some relationships are clear and powerful, others pass by with little emotional effect. Unlike in Iwashigumo (Summer Clouds) the main character of this film isn't heroic, isn't keeping up any tradition, and doesn't have any particular claim on our affections. Her defence about needing a fancy lifestyle and expensive apartment for her job, and her attitude to her family, don't seem likely to endear her to the viewer either.
Overall, it feels like a set of great talents wandering around in an inadequate storyline. It's not enough to present the facts; a great film needs to use them to show you something more general about life. And something more profound than, "Well, every job has its problems."