symbolism (spoilers!)

I love several of Imamura's films, my favorite being 'Profound Desire of the Gods' and 'Vengeance is Mine'. I really enjoyed Dr. Akagi and was entertained throughout, but I consider it a bit weaker than the other Imamura films that I've watched so far. In this case, I found some of the symbolism a little bit too forced (like the comparisons between the war culture of the time in Japan and a hypertrophied liver, and humans and bacteria). Am I the only one that thinks that way?

I've been wondering about the monster whale, though. What do you think it's supposed to represent? It definitely provides a cathartic moment for Dr. Akagi. Shortly before, he realizes that he's been torturing himself with his efforts to study hepatitis and that in reality, above all, he's a family doctor. After he and Sonoko encounter the whale, he seems to finally (if reluctantly) accept that love, or perhaps something similar ("What's the word for it?") has arrived in the form of a beautiful and very much alive girl. Next thing you know, they observe from the distance the mushroom cloud of an atomic bomb. There's a lot going on in those few minutes! The whale seems to somehow mark the end of an era in Japanese history and a stage in Dr. Akagi's life, and bring a new beginning.

Any thoughts?