Ûkichi Uno and Yasumi Hara are returned soldiers going to school, on the surface anyway. They make money through confidence tricks on women. Uno writes the scripts, and the smooth Hara carries them out. Hara comes from decayed nobility. All they have left is the house. Grandmother thinks the money is from the job as a bus conductress that Hara's sister, Setsuko Wakayama, holds. Hara tells them his money comes from a job playing the piano in a band. However, as Hara grows bolder in his depredations, Uno, under the influence of Miss Wakayama, starts to regret their crimes.
Mikio Naruse's movie is well written and acted, and the focus on the leads' preying on women is within his wheelhouse, but the focus on the men who do it, and the issues of their redemption and damnation are not his usual themes. I found it interesting, but I am fascinated by confidence games. The result is a good movie, but not one of the director's best.
Mikio Naruse's movie is well written and acted, and the focus on the leads' preying on women is within his wheelhouse, but the focus on the men who do it, and the issues of their redemption and damnation are not his usual themes. I found it interesting, but I am fascinated by confidence games. The result is a good movie, but not one of the director's best.