AllMovie

Like much of his work, Kenji Mizoguchi directs this film about an aging geisha in Kyoto's Shimabara district longing for something beyond her marginalized existence. Her aspirations for something higher are ultimately dashed when she learns that her lover has fallen for her more socially acceptable pianist daughter. Veteran actress Kinuyo Tanaka delivers a powerful multilayered performance in this movie's central role. Though this film was produced in 1954, it was screened at the 1957 Venice Film Festival.