Film Forum

流れる (Nagareru)

Director Mikio Naruse
Cast Kinuyo Tanaka, Isuzu Yamada, Hideko Takamine
Screenplay Toshirô Ide, Sumie Tanaka | Cinematography Masao Tamai
1956 | Japan | 35mm print courtesy The Japan Foundation Film Library | approx. 117 min. | In Japanese with English subtitles

Three super-stars lead a great cast: head-of-the-geisha-house Isuzu Yamada looks on the bright side, while daughter Hideko Takamine works that sewing machine. But quietly observing maid Kinuyo Tanaka is the only one who actually realizes the inevitable end of their world in a harsh post-war Tokyo.

Reviews

“A delicate, absorbing chamber work.”
– Phillip Lopate