Aging geisha Kikue (Mitsuko Yoshikawa) worries about her teenage son Yoshio (Akio Isono) who lately has been skipping school and hanging out with a gang of petty crooks. Kikue's young co-worker Terugiku (Sumiko Mizukubo) has romantic feelings for Yoshio, but she has to continue working as a geisha in order to support her family, and so that her younger sister won't be forced into the geisha life. Terugiku attempts to set Yoshio back on the straight and narrow, with tragic consequences.
Naruse's penchant for exploring the hardships of working women comes to full focus here, with both Kikue and Terugiku prime examples of women suffering so that others may live better. Mizukubo gives a very good performance, but the brief 1-hour running time doesn't leave enough room to fully explore the older Kikue character. Still, this is a nice, emotional look at pre-WW2 Japanese society.
