Onibaba

1964 · Japan · 103 min

Director: Kaneto Shindō
Screenplay: Kaneto Shindō
Music: Hikaru Hayashi

What the critics say

89 % Rotten Tomatoes positive reviews

Cast

Nobuko Otowa

Jūkichi Uno

Kei Satō

Jitsuko Yoshimura

Taiji Tonoyama

What it is about

During a civil war in medieval Japan, an older woman and her young daughter-in-law survive in a field of tall reeds near Kyoto. They ambush fleeing soldiers, kill them, strip the bodies of armor and weapons, and drop them into a hidden pit in the grass. They then sell the loot to a merchant for food. The return of a neighbor from the war upsets the balance between them, and rivalry and desire begin to undermine a partnership that once seemed solid.

How it was made

Kaneto Shindō wrote and directed the film, which draws on a Buddhist parable about a mother-in-law who puts on a demon mask to frighten her daughter-in-law, a story linked to the preacher Rennyo. Shindō said the mask's effect on its wearer stands for the disfigurement of atomic bomb victims. Most of the cast were members of his regular troupe, and Jitsuko Yoshimura's appearance was her only one in a Shindō film. Shooting began on 30 June 1964 in a reed field beside Lake Inba and lasted about three months under isolated conditions. Hikaru Hayashi's score mixes taiko drumming with jazz.

Reception and legacy

The film opened in Japan on 21 November 1964 through Toho, and reached the United States in February 1965 with English subtitles. In the United Kingdom the BBFC rejected it in 1965 and passed a heavily cut version in 1968. Criterion's 2004 DVD release made it available to a wider international audience.