Sisters of the Gion

The great Japanese director followed his tough-minded Osaka Elegy with an equally forceful but more subtle analysis of female subjugation.

Superbly acted, shot and scripted, this is searing stuff.

The masterpiece of Kenji Mizoguchi's prewar period.

It is a brief movie, which is impressive considering how much of Japanese culture its critique assults, but it must be conceded that it loses a little of its potential richness as a result.