Sada

17 May 1936, Tokyo. The country is nearing war, the economy is bad and the army is increasing its weight in politics. In that climate a woman is arrested. Sada worked at a restaurant; she was involved with the man who ran it and she killed him. The case fills the press and within a short time becomes the country's only subject. The film begins with Sada's youth: the violence she suffered, the houses she entered, the places she worked and how she came to that point are told in turn. Nobuhiko Obayashi directs. Hitomi Kuroki plays Sada. The event behind the narrative is real: the Sada Abe case is among the most discussed in twentieth century Japan and has been adapted for cinema many times. Obayashi's approach differs from the other adaptations; the film does not put sexuality at the centre and takes the case together with the politics of the period. His known manner is here too: coloured filters, artificial sets and an image that deliberately moves away from realism. The narrative builds Sada as neither monster nor victim; the film shows her as the product of a period. The role of the press is an important strand and the film uses newspaper headlines directly. Its limit is form; for some viewers the manner does not match the weight of the subject. Who it is for: viewers who like Japanese cinema and formal experiment. Who it is not for: the subject is heavy, the narrative loose, and the visual manner unusual.