All About Marriage / 結婚のすべて / Kekkon no subete (1958)

Obscure Japanese Film #51

Michiyo Aratama and Izumi Yukimura

Kihachi Okamoto’s directorial debut is a light comedy which begins with a shot of a young couple kissing in a boat on a beach before the camera pulls back to reveal it’s merely a scene being shot for a movie. For the next few minutes, the film continues in faux-documentary style with some narration by an uncredited Keiju Kobayashi before settling down to focus on the main story. It’s a tale of two contrasting sisters – Yasuko (Izumi Yukimura), a very modern young woman who has fully embraced the new Westernised culture of post-war Japan, and Keiko (Michiyo Aratama), her older sister, who is always seen in Japanese dress and represents more traditional and conservative values. However, Michiyo is married to Saburo (Ken Uehara), a staid university professor who takes her somewhat for granted, as a result of which she indulges in a flirtation with Koga (Tatsuya Mihashi), the editor of a woman’s magazine. Meanwhile, Yasuko falls for a student, Hiroshi (Shinji Yamada), before discovering that he’s two-timing her with carefree young hedonist Mariko (Reiko Dan). Disillusioned, she finally takes up instead with Akira (Tatsuya Nakadai), a young man who works for her father’s company and of whom her father approves as a potential future husband.

Ken Uehara

Although handed such routine material for his first assignment as director, Okamoto invests it with considerable wit and invention along the way and certainly puts his unique stamp upon it, filling out the supporting cast with a variety of eccentric characters, several of whom verge on caricature. At times, he seems to intend a satire of a consumerist society in thrall to America and embracing everything from chewing gum to bad Elvis pastiches. In any case, his film is not only an enjoyable entertainment, but an interesting cultural artefact and I’d love to see it again with subtitles (there’s a lot of dialogue).

Toshiro Mifune

 

 

Among the colourful cast, Toshiro Mifune appears for a few seconds in an uncredited cameo as an acting teacher, while Tatsuya Nakadai’s part is larger but still brief – he first appears 52 minutes in and then is not seen again until the final couple of minutes. Pre-Human Condition, Nakadai was not yet a major star, but must have gained some popularity in the wake of his role for Masaki Kobayashi in Black River (1957) as he’s featured quite prominently in the trailer. It’s Reiko Dan who steals the show, though – given an attention-grabbing entrance dancing down the street to a rock and roll tune, she’s vivacity on legs. 

 

Tatsuya Nakadai and Izumi Yukimura

 

 

 

Reiko Dan

 

Watched without subtitles. 

 

You may also enjoy reading Robin Gatto’s review.  

DVD at Amazon Japan