TheNabOwnzz 50s and 60s Japanese cinema had so many directors that created honest, emotional movies that dared to criticize humanity and it's natural flaws in such a moving way. Mizoguchi is one of these great directors, and Sansho the Bailiff is his masterpiece.There is always something extra moving about a film that follows its core characters from when they were of a really young age ( 13 and 8 ) to when they have turned into adults. In this case, they have grown up from this young age in suffering and slavery. We get to know Zushio and Anju from when they were just little kids and this makes the events that unfold all the more devastating. It depicts a great passing of time, and the immersion in this film is so great that is truly feels as though so many years have gone by, and you can really connect with the characters and their suffering due to the fantastic narrative structure and editing. Take a look at the seemingly 'simple' scene of Zushio helping Anju cut down a branch as kids, and later look at Zushio having given in to slavery as an adult, but being reminded of how his life used to be when he once again cuts down a branch with Anju, which resorts him to realizing the error of his ways and wanting to escape, resulting in such a touching symbolism. The mother and father are not really followed by the narrative, but are used very well as a secondary structure of the only ways our main characters can still connect with their former lifes.With gorgeous black and white cinematography and some smooth flowing camera work it is the kind of motion picture that simply flows by so subtly while still creating such an immersive experience. There is not a single acting performance that is truly a lesser part of this film, but Kyoko Kagawa ( Anju ) really stands out as an exceptional performance as someone in which you can truly feel her inner troubles and her suffering due to her exceptional emotional range as an actress ( Look at the scene where she first hears her mother's song for example ). Screenplay is absolutely fantastic, and a lot of the dialogue brings up question about the flaws in humanity ( Zushio's father's words & the character of Taro also brings this up perfectly aswell ) and ages long moral struggles which are still as relevant as ever today.This movie reminds us about how good motion pictures can be and how some films are able to truly make a connection to the audience. In the end it is an experience that will leave you emotionally shattered because of the brilliant way Mizoguchi has created this masterpiece.

sharky_55 For almost the entirety of the one hundred and twenty four minutes, the characters are tiny, insignificant figures. Mizoguchi has a rigid, classical style deeply steeped in composition; the scene has already been etched in with lines and placements and blocking, so what is the use in moving the camera? This approach mimics the sedentary lives of the characters. Their menial work is confined to a square, and when they walk, it seems to be with no destination in sight at all. When the non-slaves move it is with an illusion of purpose - they seem convinced that there is something of a cause to aspire towards, and travel in nameless horde. Mizoguchi never graces them with a closeup, and in a suicidal sacrifice that would haunt even the most steady viewer, he robs even this act of its agency, and suggests that her body has the impact of little more than a stone spreading ripples through the lake's surface.So there are two truly great scenes here that shatter this apparent idyllic illusion. The first is the riot and revolution as the ex- slaves rise up and tear down their former master's mansion. Mizoguchi's crisp lines and segments are utterly demolished in fire and frenzy - the camera struggles to fully capture the extent of the chaos. This would not have happened without that teary outburst from Zushio, former slaver to former slave, freeing them from their captivity and urging them to go live their lives. It is tremendously powerful because he has been both literally and figuratively shackled for his entire life, so the emotional outpour is not only for those he addresses, but for his own release. The second is the final shot. Zushio has been told that his long lost mother has surely been reclaimed by the elements, by the recent tidal wave. This recalls Anju's death - who seemed to go willingly and of her own accord, but which Mizoguchi made so painful and inevitable with the threat of the slaver's torture. When Zushio finally reconciles with Tamaki there is an outpouring of both grief and happiness in conflict. She says that they have been pulled together by fate only because he has never wavered by his late father's two commands; to be merciful to all, because all men are born equal and entitled to happiness. And yet Mizoguchi pans away from what seems like closure...once again to the sea, which is only biding its time to once again swallow these tiny little figures. How much of this shoreline has it eroded?

robertasmith It is rare for me as I get older, to be able to watch a film without pausing it for a break. However, this gem of a film had me gripped from start to finish.The camera work is stunning and the acting thoughtful and believable.I have watched quites a few Japanese films from this era, mainly Kurosawa but others such as kaneto shindo. This is a very different film and does not have the comic moments of Kurosawa. It is raw and unforgiving and tells a moving story that can be seen as a comment on humanity in whatever age.I don't want to say anymore as I don't have the eloquence to do it justice or words that would not spoil it for others. All I can say is buy it and watch it on a large widescreen and you will be forever rewarded.

Robert J. Maxwell After the first twenty minutes or so I wasn't expecting too much from this production, despite the cachet of the director's name. A humanistic governor of a rural Japanese village in the feudal era is sent into exile and his wife and two children must wander the roads. They run into bandits. The mother is sold into slavery on one island and her little boy and girl are slaves on another. Innumerable tribulations follow and I worried this might turn into a 1954 Japanese version of torture porn.By this time, though, I noticed a couple of interesting things about the film. One was that every shot -- and I mean every single shot -- was done with the eye of a painter. The compositions were nearly perfect.Another thing I noticed was -- well, have you ever seen one of Sergio Leone's spaghetti Westerns? Or any of their imitations? You know, the movies that are full of greasy faces in choker close ups, the bone-white teeth glistening out at you? If you have, then imagine the opposite. I only saw one close up in the entire movie, and that comes near the end when the identity of a blind, lame old woman on the beach is revealed. In the absence of close ups, even a medium shot, or a shot of someone from the waist up, is a bit of a shock.Anyone who's kept his eyes open will be familiar with the mistreatment of slaves. The forms they take seem universal. You get separated from your family, the women serve as whores, they're beaten for infractions, and if they try to run away they're branded or they have their Achilles' tendon cut.After eight years of suffering, the young boy, Zushio manages to escape from the manor of the slave owner Sansho, a Bailiff. He comes across one of those benefactors found in some stories -- "Ben Hur" or a tale by Dickens. As a result, he becomes governor of the province, frees all the slaves, arrests Sancho the Bailiff, and resigns his post in order to go in search of two slaves who had become his friends, as well as his sister and his mother. The results are mixed.When Zushio escapes, the pace of the film picks up and by the end I was thoroughly involved in the fate of the young man and his family. And that's despite the fact that this is not a Samurai movie. There is no swordplay or any genuine combat, although it could easily have fitted into the narrative.The story is rudimentary, not very complicated, and the movie is in black and white with subtitles. But this is a tragedy of the sort that is universal in its appeal. Well worth catching, as long as you have some patience during the establishing scenes.