Sansho The Bailiff DVD

Set in medieval Japan, Mizoguchi's widely-lauded masterpiece is one of his finest and most heartfelt meditations on the inhumane nature of the caste system, and its effects on the individual. When a compassionate governor is sent into exile, his wife and two young children try to join him. Armed only with the father's mantra to be kind to others if not to yourself, the family are soon forced into serfdom, with mother sent to a distant island far from her son and daughter. Many years later, Zushio has grown into a bully, terrorising the other serfs for personal betterment. His sister Anju, however, has never forgotten her father's words, and endeavours to remain true to his benevolent ethos. Unarguably one of Mizoguchi's crowning achievements, Sansho the Bailiff is a film of startling beauty and incomparable genius.