Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
I have unusually mixed feelings about this film. On one hand, it's a masterpiece, a beautiful morality tale told in stark black and white. The two protagonists have a lust for gold and glory that makes them neglect their families, the ones they truly value. With an atmosphere of eerie mystery, it imparts its mood as well as its message to the viewer.
The part that annoys me is that this movie is supposed to be based o two tales from the classic book Ugetsu Monogatari or Tales of Moonlight and Rain. Published in 1768 by Akinari Ueda, this story collection is a major landmark in Japanese weird fiction, but the film, Ugetsu seems so different in tone and atmosphere from the book. As fine as the film is and however closely it adapts plot elements from the tales, it is hard for me to associate one with the other.