“The fruit of experience is beauty” / UGETSU

雨月物語 or Ugetsu or Tales of Moonlight and Rain is a 1953 film made by Kenji Mizoguchi. It’s not a subtle film. You might even say it’s the opposite of subtle as four characters are developed to tell the same story. It’s also not subtle because it’s emotionally arresting. I didn’t cry at this movie, I just teared up a bit, but 30 minutes later, an hour later, it hits you like a boulder over and over. It’s that intense. It makes you want to wake up from whatever dream you’re living. It makes you want to love someone, unconditionally, eternally, inhumanly, even, or rather, especially if it’s not possible.
This movie is not a love story. It’s a very colorful drama, with pain, horror, comedy, mystery, and finally love. The scenery is extremely delicate. Perfectly balanced with the artistic direction is the timing and camera movement, that move slowly from side to side as if you’re being cradled. You watch silently as people die, love, suffer and dream. The timing is perfect. It’s fast paced in general, except for a few key scenes where the slow pace increases the intensity tenfold.It’s a dark movie, which I wasn’t totally in love with because it made things harder to see, but it fit the tone. I tried not to give away too much in my post because the mystery element of the film is very entertaining to see unfold. I will say however that it is a ghost story, and has a couple disturbing scenes. It’s all necessary to go full-circle with the movie’s karmic mood.

The finest silk
Of choicest hue
May change and fade away;
As would my life,
My beloved,
If thou shouldst prove untrue…