CINEMATIC Review

UGETSU   ****

Kenji Mizoguchi

1953

IDEA:   In the midst of war, two village men travel to town in order to fulfill their richest dreams. One man sets off to become a warrior, while the other falls in love with a ghost.

BLURB:   Powerful and enchanting Japanese fable, made with an almost otherworldly sort of expressiveness and lyrical intimacy. With its rich themes, potent story, and starkly characterized catalysts, not to mention densely commanding camerawork, this is art of timeless importance and everlasting universality, suffused with a sense of mystery and gentle-handed elegance that permeates its every frame. As well as being a masterful humanist drama and passionate ghost story, Mizoguchi deftly conveys a bittersweet truth in our existence… the shortcomings, or the illusions, that blend seamlessly and symbiotically into our realities. A must see.