Ryôtarô Mizushima is dying. He asks Shin Saburi, the son of an old friend, to take over as head of his hospital and to clear up the mess in his estate; his son, Tatsuo Saitô, has no interest in business or medicine, just in golf, drinking and chasing girls. Saburi agrees, and runs into immediate conflict with the unbelieving Saitô, as well as the hospital gossip and politics. Mizushima's daughter, Mieko Takamine, agrees to his every proposal, but she is engaged to Shin Tokudaiji, a doctor at the hospital.
In short, it's a soap opera set at a hospital. The original movie ran 177 minutes. The copy that was rereleased in 1947 is 124 minutes, and that is the version I looked at. There are some obvious cuts, particularly towards the end, but the story remains intact. Saburi gives a performance that is focused and narrow-minded in its intensity. Miss Takamine is charming, and the other cast members are good under the direction of Kôzaburô Yoshimura. If hospital-based soaps are your cup of tea, this Japanese variation should be interesting.
