Priest of Darkness (1936)
Sadao Yamanaka's "Priest of Darkness"
Going into my second Sadao Yamanka film, I was very excited as I found his previous entry, 1935's "The Million Ryo Pot" to be very entertaining and engaging. However, I was less impressed with "Priest of Darkness," despite it still being a fine film. It had a lot of similarities to "The Million Ryo Pot," but seemed to focus more on the plot dynamics than on character.
"Priest of Darkness" is about a young shop owner whose younger brother steals a small knife from a samurai. This simple theft begins a chain of events that erect innumerable consequences. As the film progresses, the tangled web the characters find themselves only gets trickier to maneuver.
I feel as though the twists and turns of the plot are both paradoxically the film's strong suite as well as its weakest. I was fascinated how a single event creates a domino effect with more and more complex consequences. All of the characters get tangled in a web of theft, debt, secrecy, and sacrifice all because of the complex social dynamics between them. The film does a great job of illustrating the complex nature of social interaction in Japan, from economics to honor. These dynamics create the drama and tension in the story. I found this to be thoroughly engaging. However, my main problem with the film comes from the complexity of the plot also. At times, I started to get lost on who was who, what was owed, what sword was real or fake, etc. Perhaps this is a fault of my own and didn't pay enough attention to the crucial details. However, it got slightly confusing at times and perhaps I would've benefitted from a plot layout.
Overall, I enjoyed the film despite my temporary confusions. It is still an engaging story with interesting characters.
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