Directed by the Japanese master Kenji Mizoguchi, A Story from Chikamatsu (also known as The Crucified Lovers) is a visually stunning masterpiece of 17th-century jidai-geki (period drama). Based on a classic puppet play by Chikamatsu Monzaemon, the film is a haunting indictment of rigid social hierarchies and the cruelty of legalistic morality.
Synopsis
Set in Kyoto during the Edo period, the story follows Mohei, a dedicated and hardworking apprentice at a prominent scroll-binding shop. In an attempt to help his master’s wife, Osan, resolve a private family debt, Mohei becomes entangled in a series of misunderstandings that lead to a false accusation of adultery—a crime punishable by death under the strict laws of the Shogunate.
Forced to flee to avoid execution, the two social outcasts find themselves on the run through the Japanese countryside. What begins as a desperate flight for survival gradually transforms into a profound, forbidden romance. As the law closes in, the couple must choose between the crushing weight of societal honor and the liberation of their own shared devotion.
Key Figures
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Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
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Cast:
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Kazuo Hasegawa as Mohei
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Kyōko Kagawa as Osan
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Eitarō Shindō as Ishun (The Master)
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Sakae Ozawa as Sukememon
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Yōko Minamida as Otama
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Cinematic Style
The film is celebrated for its fluid cinematography and Mizoguchi’s signature “one scene, one shot” technique. The atmosphere is thick with tension, using the natural landscapes of Japan to mirror the emotional isolation and eventual transcendence of the protagonists.
