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Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME

Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME

2 Episodes

Observations on Film Art No. 27

Master director Kenji Mizoguchi’s final film, STREET OF SHAME—a wrenching portrait of women working in a brothel in Tokyo’s red-light district—employs intricate mise-en-scène to create an almost hypnotic relationship between viewer and image. In this episode of Observations on Film Art, Professor David Bordwell examines how the filmmaker, working with the great cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa, uses camera placement, framing, and intricate choreography of movement to build anticipation, define the relationships between characters, and heighten the film’s powerful critique of patriarchal injustice.

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Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME

2 Episodes

  • Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME
    14:06
    Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME
    Episode 1

    Games of Vision in STREET OF SHAME

    Episode 1

  • Street of Shame
    1:26:15
    Street of Shame
    Episode 2

    Street of Shame

    Episode 2

    Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi • 1956 • Japan

    For his final film, Mizoguchi brought a lifetime of experience to bear on the heartbreaking tale of a brothel full of women whose dreams are constantly being shattered by the socioeconomic realities surrounding them. Set in Tokyo's Red Light District (t...

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