Women of the Night

Kenji Mizoguchi's 1948 Japanese film follows three women driven into prostitution by poverty in post-war Osaka. Fusako lost her husband in the war, and her sister and sister-in-law take the same road for their own reasons; the film does not judge them but shows the system. Mizoguchi shot part of it in real ruined locations, which gives the film a documentary harshness. Its most cited passage is the collapse of solidarity among the women: poverty makes solidarity impossible. Kinuyo Tanaka's performance carries it. The ending is almost unbearably dark and keeps that tone despite the censorship of the period. Who it's for: viewers interested in Japanese classics and post-war realism. Who it's not for: anyone avoiding content involving sexual violence and illness, or looking for hope.