Sansho the Bailiff

Adapted from Mori Ogai's novel of the same title, itself based on a widely known medieval tale, Sansho the Bailiff depicts the changing fortunes of siblings Zushio (Hanayagi Yoshiaki) and Anju (Kagawa Kyoko), who are separated from their mother by human traffickers and forced into servitude under the cruel bailiff Sansho. Mizoguchi meticulously researched the estate system of the Heian period in which the film is set, recreating its world with rigorous realism. The film received the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival in 1954.