Day 12 - Drunken Angel

Drunken Angel (1948) directed by Akira Kurosawa

Twelve movies in and four of them have been Japanese and two from Akira Kurosawa. All I can say is Asian pride, or rather AzN pRiDE! ReMBeR wHeN TYpiNg LiKe tHis wAs cOoL? Neither do I. Mental retardation is nothing to joke about.

Drunken Angel is a landmark film for several reasons. One, it was the film in which Akira Kurosawa was said to have found his style and two, it marked the first pairing of Toshiro Minfune with Kurosawa in what would go on to be a long and storied professional relationship spanning several decades and 16 films. Incidentally, Takashi Shimura, a brilliant actor in his own right, also stars in Drunken Angel, one of 21 films he's worked with the famed director. In a historical context, Drunken Angel was one of Kurosawa's first post-WW2 films in an era of American occupation and influence and a Japan trying to reconcile with its past and reinvention of itself. These themes would trickle their way into Kurosawa's work beginning with this film.

Drunken Angel is about the relationship between a brash young hood, Matsunaga (Mifune), set on a path of self destruction and an equally brash but caring physician, Sanada (Shimura), who takes him on as a patient. The two initially treat each other with hostility, Sanada scorning the virulent youth and Matsunaga responding back with contempt, unable to accept his own vulnerability. When the doctor diagnoses the young gangster with TB, he orders him to take it easy, meaning no boozing, smoking or womanizing. Matsunaga, of course, opts to ignore the doctor's advices and continues his old ways, much to Sanada's chagrin. Throughout the movie, the doctor chastises him, lectures him, throws objects at him and disowns him as a patient more than once, while Matsunaga in return beats Sanada, threatens him, and constantly ignores his orders and advice. Both are terribly flawed individuals, which is what makes the relationship somehow work. What follows is an uneasy friendship of sorts between doctor-patient, father figure-troubled youth, "angel"/guardian-someone in need, or in a broader context of Kurosawa's works, master-disciple which he would use frequently throughout his career.

There is a turning point in the movie when Matsunaga accepts his diagnosis and attempts to follow the doctor's orders, but as it always seems to be the case in movies, it is difficult to escape who you are. His old boss returns to his territory from prison and offers Matsunaga a drink with him in celebration. Ultimately, it is a decision between his old way of life and his redemption.

It is interesting watching the then unknown Toshiro Mifune in his first major role. You can see his trademark gruffness and passion that would put even an amped up Al Pacino to shame. His eyes pop with the intensity of a  crazed lunatic which is mesmerizing to watch. Check out his face when he's dancing in this movie, it's flat out creepy. Takashi Shimura matches Mifune's fiery intensity as an alcoholic doctor whose gruff exterior hides a caring heart. It would seem that a common Japanese acting method is to simply yell all the lines to convey anger or passion. This is especially true in samurai or yakuza flicks.

Drunken Angel feels very western, unsurprisingly given its historical context. Set in post-war Japan, storefronts have English signs and the cliched jazz clubs mirror old Hollywood gangster pictures, complete with a woman crooning in the old swinging jazz style of the roaring 20's. A guitar player sits alone in the dark outside the doctor's office playing for no one in particular setting a melancholy atmosphere.

The common recurring visual cue in the movie is the filthy cesspool sitting in the middle of the slum, perhaps a reference to Japan's decaying society under American rule. Matsunaga often stares idly into the pond focusing his attention on a doll floating among the debris. Given his diminishing state, he sees himself in that doll and all that he represents slowly dying along with the old Japan. There is no place in this new society for his code of honor in which Sanada calls feudal and "makes [him] want to puke." In Matsunaga's eyes, facing death gives him face, but all that really remains is the human waste, making it all senseless, like the war itself. (I either hit a homerun or struck out with that one!) But even in the filth and scum of the cesspool, you can see the beauty in it as well, the reflection of the moon and landscape in its murky waters creating a contrast of feelings.

A couple notable scenes include the the song and dance number in the jazz club which is loud and rambunctious. Another is a fantasy dream sequence where Matsunaga is chased by his own ghost on the sea shore. There is a nice visual flair to it with the big crashing waves and overlapping images that make the scene fascinating to watch, though seems to come out of left field and a little out of place compared to the rest of the movie. The final scene involving Matsunaga on his last legs bursting out of the building and into the sunlight feels almost spiritual in nature and I'm sure you could throw in some interpretation in there about redemption and freedom, etc etc.

One final note, fighting choreography sure has gone a long way. Check out the fight scene from Fast Five and compare it to the knife scene in this one and you'll see what I mean.

Overall, a solid outing by a young Kurosawa and an even younger Minfune, though the plot is formulaic and the payoff in the end falls a little flat. There are, however, the flashes of brilliance that would eventually make Kurosawa a legend which is worth watching for its place in cinematic history, or if you simply want to watch a decent enough film.

Grade: B