Secretary by day, Chikako works in a cabaret in the evenings to pay for her brother Ryoichi’s studies. When he discovers his sister’s double life through his fiancée, he finds it hard to come to terms with this truth.
In this melodramatic scenario that would certainly have pleased Mizoguchi, Ozu, giving an occasional wink and nod to Lubitsch (whom he admires), had already laid down the stylistic characteristics that were to establish his reputation (no depth of field, shots of objects or hung-out washing blowing in the wind), forging his particular way of tracing poetic lines on the screen of everyday life. JB
