Purely Joyful Movie!

Please don't spend money on this.

This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

DRUNKEN ANGEL sees the master of Japanese cinema, Akira Kurosawa, on solid form in the simplistic tale of the developing friendship between an alcoholic doctor and a dying gangster who comes to him for help. While the story is set very noticeably in a poor, run-down, post-WW2 Japan, the story is one which brims with life and vitality, which is somewhat ironic given the subject matter.The calibre of the acting is second to none which is no surprise for fans of the director. Takashi Shimura underpins the whole thing as the titular character, a stressed-out doctor battling the bottle as well as the problems of his various associates and patients, but it's Toshiro Mifune who gives the stand-out turn here. This was the star's first collaboration with Kurosawa and it comes as no surprise that the pair would go on to re-team many times in the future. Mifune's performance as the small-fry gangster, addicted to drinking and partying and yet suffering from the effects of tuberculosis, is one of his greats.Kurosawa's cinematography is another winner here, and there are some fine moments of tension including a great, extended fight scene at the climax. My favourite moment is a bizarre dream sequence in which Mifune is chased along a beach by a corpse only to find himself trapped in a slow motion run. It's one of the few times that the director went for outright horror (along with THRONE OF BLOOD) and it makes me wish he had made an all-out horror film at least once in his career.

Drunken Angel is not a movie driven by plot or action, it is above all a character study of a hard living Yakuza gangster and the doctor determined to save his life. It may not be exciting or humorous, and I wouldn't call it a masterpiece, but it works quite well as a relationship movie- albeit not the kind you're probably used to.The good doctor (the "drunken angel" of the title, played by Takashi Shimura) is an interesting character. For one thing, he drinks- a lot. At one point he sheepishly admits to a colleague that he drank the medicinal alcohol he was allotted. And his bedside manner leaves much to be desired. His manner is brusque, and he's not afraid to shout at his patients or call them idiots. But his ruff style belies the fact that he is deeply dedicated to his profession, and to those placed in his care.But he's never had to deal with a guy like Matsunaga (Toshiro Mifune). This guy is the patient from hell. Supremely self confident, not inclined to follow instructions, and more than willing to beat you up if he doesn't like what you have to tell him. And although he doesn't want to face it, he has a deadly case of TB. If he wants to live, he'll have to straighten out and give up drinking, smoking, and the girls. But when an old 'friend' gets out of jail, his position in the underworld is threatened, and reform may be too much to ask for.It's amazing that no matter how many times Matsunaga screws up, no matter how crass or violent he gets, the doctor never gives up on him. When he shows up knee walking drunk, the doc puts him up for the night. When he gets a late-night emergency call, he goes to care for him. The doctor complains bitterly, saying that he's had it and he refuses to see the patient anymore, but we know it's only bluster. For all his flaws, the doctor is far too dedicated to give in.Drunken Angel is also a message movie about the dangers of hard living and the lack of honor among thieves. As his illness worsens, Matsunaga discovers that his so called friends were only interested in his wealth and influence. His old friend Okada, sensing weakness, wants his territory. The big boss sees him only as a pawn whose condition can be exploited. Even his steady girlfriend wants nothing to do with a terminally sick man.And as severe as his illness was, Matsunaga could have lived if he had only followed the doctor's orders. But his friends and his surroundings were as deadly as the TB. The very way he lived his life was as sick as his lungs, his outlook and values as rotten as the bog that runs through the neighborhood. And yet deep down he was not a bad man. Kurosawa understood that showing an evil, repulsive man coming to a bad end would be no different from countless other morality plays. By giving us a character we can sympathize with, he has conveyed his message all the more powerfully.

Drunken Angel (1948) *** (out of 4) Straight-forward and simple drama about the troubled relationship between a low level gangster (Toshiro Mifune) dying of tuberculosis and the drunken doctor (Takashi Shimura) trying to save him during post-war Japan. There are a lot of different genres on display in this early Kurosawa film including noir, gangster and an odd couple drama. The three don't always mix too well together but Kurosawa's great direction mixed with the great lead performances make this a must see even if the gang would go onto much better films. What works the best here are the performances by Shimura and Mifune. The two men work extremely well together because they make their characters so well rounded to the point where you feel as if you know everything about the men. Mifune really digs deep into the gangster and this leads to many well acted scenes including the drunken one where the gangster must finally realize how serious his disease is. Shimura clearly steals the film as the angry and often times bitter, if still caring, drunken doctor. The amount of anger he displays with his character while still making us understand why he cares so much is perfectly done by the actor. Cheiko Nakakita and Reizaburo Yamamoto are also very good in their supporting roles of the nurse and gang boss. The cinematography is also top-notch especially a dream like sequence where the dying gangster invisions himself as a zombie-like creature. This scene is very effective as is another where spitting blood is involved. I think at times the film is way too over dramatic and this includes many scenes dealing with the "swampness" of Japan. Even with that said, this is still a very impressive drama that fans of Kurosawa will want to check out.

This good, if not great early Kurosawa is still rough around the edges and not free of obvious symbolism and narrative weaknesses. It all feels somewhat forced and not quite as fluent and natural as later works.But, needless to say, there are always pleasures to be had from a movie made by this wonderful artist: Kurosawa favourites Shimura and Mifune (in his first teaming with Kurosawa) give their usual multi-layered performances, the mise-en-scène is superb, and a sound gimmick featuring guitar-playing is brilliantly used to enhance atmosphere.In this instance, though, one cannot fully swallow the director's "life's a swamp but use your willpower and watch out for the silver lining"-attitude. He jumbled it this time. But glorious things would follow...7 out of 10 buckets of immaculately white paint