Mother (1963 film)

Mother (母, Haha) is a 1963 Japanese drama film written and directed by Kaneto Shindo.^[1]

Plot

Tamiko (Nobuko Otowa) is a single mother. Her son Toshio (Koji Takahashi) is going blind. He is diagnosed with a brain tumour. She does not have the money for surgery. She asks her mother Yoshie (Haruko Sugimura) for money. Yoshie refuses but arranges a marriage with another single parent, Tajima (Taiji Tonoyama) on condition he pays for the surgery. Tamiko marries Tajima and works with him in his printing business. Toshio is operated on and recovers. However, the tumour returns. The surgeon (Kei Sato) refuses to operate, saying that another operation would be fatal, and tells Tamiko to make Toshio's remaining life enjoyable. Toshio starts learning braille. Tamiko's brother Haruo lends her money to buy an electric organ for Toshio. Haruo, a barman, is involved in various fights over women, and finally dies in an attempt to kill a rival. Toshio dies of the tumour. Tamiko discovers she is pregnant and is determined to have the baby, even if it is dangerous to her health.

Cast

• Nobuko Otowa as Tamiko
• Haruko Sugimura as Yoshie
• Takeshi Katō as Toshiro
• Seiji Miyaguchi as Doctor
• Mayumi Ogawa as Madame
• Kei Sato as Dr. Koiguchi
• Kôji Takahashi as Haruo
• Tetsuji Takechi as Madame's boyfriend
• Taiji Tonoyama as Tajima
• Yoshitaka Zushi as Toshio

Production

Tajima's vehicle is a Mazda K360. Many of the scenes are filmed against the background of the Genbaku Dome in Hiroshima.

References

External links

• Mother at the Internet Movie Database