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The Life of Oharu

The Life of Oharu (1952)

April. 17,1952
|
8.1
| Drama

In Edo Period Japan, a noblewoman's banishment for her love affair with a lowly page signals the beginning of her inexorable fall.

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GamerTab
1952/04/17

That was an excellent one.

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AniInterview
1952/04/18

Sorry, this movie sucks

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Lawbolisted
1952/04/19

Powerful

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Doomtomylo
1952/04/20

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

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Chris Barry
1952/04/21

I finally saw Life of Oharu at the Ontario Cinematheque in Toronto last night and what an amazing film it was.I don't know why I held out on Mizoguchi for so long. I think it's because I watched a lot of Ozu in the day and expected more of the same heavily restrained, obliquely symbolic style which is often as alienating as it is inventive. I couldn't have been further off the mark. Mizoguchi's style is fluid and assured like Hitchcock and Bresson. He also injects a warmth of spirit and shows a genuine interest in storytelling which is often absent in much of Ozu's ouevre.The Story of Oharu is a treatise on how women are economically exploited in a patriarchal society. This is probably one of the greatest 'women's films' ever made. It ranks above 'Breaking The Waves' and Sirk's 'Imitation of Life'. No small feat!! If you like stories that actually say something about the world in which we live, I would strongly recommend this film. It's a masterpiece of world cinema. I am definitely going to see more Mizoguchi.

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Atavisten
1952/04/22

It was sickening to witness how Ohara was treated by the noble men of high rank and even by her father. She is a strong and proud woman, but she has a series of misfortunes of things she could not very well control herself. Because of her looks, her pride and her birth she is put, mostly by force, into various agreements that are disgrading and she meets little compassion.That said, as this is based on a novel by Iharu Saikaku, it has strong tendencies towards being epic in approach. This is not a bad thing, but it takes on being a fairytale almost instead of gaining credibility like say 'Donzoko' by Kurosawa. For emotional impact Mizoguchi is an absolute master however and this tragic tale could not be outdone by any other.

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rbiko-1
1952/04/23

I cannot agree with the reviewer who commented that Mizoguchi does not have the aesthetic sensibility of Kurosawa or Ozu. In fact, he appears to me to be the true master of Japanese cinema. 'Oharu' is a marvellous achievement - a compassionate, beautiful account of a quite astonishing fall from privilege and grace into destitution and despair. It is unremittingly bleak and yet due to Mizoguchi's genius and Kinuyo Tanaka's luminous portrayal of the unlucky Oharu, it is a spiritually compelling work, with sheer artistry and simple human empathy competing for our attention in every take. Breathtaking film-making of the highest quality.

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alan-459
1952/04/24

A great film, but why do all the reference books etc. insist that Oharu's lover Katsunosuke is played by Toshiro Mifune? It's a completely different actor! Mifune's face appears superimposed on a statue at the beginning, but that's the only appearance he makes! Not even the Japan experts like Donald Richie seem to have picked this up.Apart from that, the great Kinuyo Tanaka puts in a heartrending performance as the eponymous Oharu, in what must be the most passionately feminist film ever made (Mizoguchi and Dreyer are the two great feminist directors). There are also a couple of intensely comic scenes, not what one expects from Mizoguchi.But I'm still waiting for an explanation about Mifune, and who the actor is who plays Katsunosuke!

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