Conformity, Social Politics and Corruption
This was a very political film and reminded me of a Kurosawa picture for that reason.
duty, obligation, conformity, suicides, castes, women as near slaves, powerful elite who act dishonerably
a rebel, the desperate wife of a rebel, a Kensai Todo who relinquishes his title and position to be a farmer, a Kitigari who is growing disallusioned with the life he's been leading. a Kei who comes from a horribly failed first marriage. Interestingly alot of the key figures have had their lives dramatically altered at some point and the causes revolve around such things as politics, social norms, corruption, and conflicts between personal ideology and reality.
In the end, Kitigari too becomes a rebel of sorts... just like Kensai Todo. I think when his friend's wife died it reminded him of his father which was probably the main event in his life that caused him to doubt some of the cultural dogma that's been preached. Reliving his father's death through her and the senselessness of it was the proverbial straw breaking the camel's back.
I like how in the final scene Kie is sitting right along side him whereas previously when they were outside sitting at the beach, she was sitting behind him. Change is in store for pre-Industrial Japan.