Masaki Kobayashi

This 1964 Japanese anthology film, directed by Masaki Kobayashi, is a visually stunning adaptation of Lafcadio Hearn’s collection of Japanese ghost stories. The film is divided into four distinct segments,…

Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.

Set against the backdrop of World War II, this film follows Kaji, a pacifist and socialist, as he navigates the moral complexities of managing a labor camp in Japanese-occupied Manchuria….