"Miss Oyu" is about a man in love with the elder sister of his wife. In fact he was already in love when he married, and he married only to become the brother in law of his loved one.
In Western style movies this love triangle would be all about trickery and deceit. In this Japanese film it is all about self sacrifice. The wife knows very well that her husband doesn't love her but wants to allow her sister a sexual relationship. A relationship that tradition denies to a widow with children.
The only Western film that vaguely resembles "Miss Oyu" in the treatment of a love triangle is part 9 of the "Dekalog" (1989, Krzysztof Kieslowski) in which an impotent man encourages his wife to take a lover. In this film self sacrifice ex ante does not preclude jealousy ex post. Also in "Miss Oyu" self sacrifice has its price.
"Miss Oyu" is based on a story by Junichiro Tanizaki and directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. Given these two big names one would expect a film of high quality. "Miss Oyu" is however at times very sentimental.
The reason probably is that "Miss Oyu" is the first film Mizoguchi made for the Daiei studio and the Daiei studio needed a commercial success very badly. By the term "studio system" everybody thinks of Hollywood, but the studio system in Japan worked more or less the same. When you were a renowned director, as Mizoguchi was, you were allowed to make one film for the sudio and one film according to your own artistic interest. "Miss Oyu" was for the studio.
In Western style movies this love triangle would be all about trickery and deceit. In this Japanese film it is all about self sacrifice. The wife knows very well that her husband doesn't love her but wants to allow her sister a sexual relationship. A relationship that tradition denies to a widow with children.
The only Western film that vaguely resembles "Miss Oyu" in the treatment of a love triangle is part 9 of the "Dekalog" (1989, Krzysztof Kieslowski) in which an impotent man encourages his wife to take a lover. In this film self sacrifice ex ante does not preclude jealousy ex post. Also in "Miss Oyu" self sacrifice has its price.
"Miss Oyu" is based on a story by Junichiro Tanizaki and directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. Given these two big names one would expect a film of high quality. "Miss Oyu" is however at times very sentimental.
The reason probably is that "Miss Oyu" is the first film Mizoguchi made for the Daiei studio and the Daiei studio needed a commercial success very badly. By the term "studio system" everybody thinks of Hollywood, but the studio system in Japan worked more or less the same. When you were a renowned director, as Mizoguchi was, you were allowed to make one film for the sudio and one film according to your own artistic interest. "Miss Oyu" was for the studio.