tanoshimi.

discussion of after the rain

This film is dedicated to Akira Kurosawa, and it seems that Koizumi’s protagonist is a direct response to the ronin from the Kurosawa films we have viewed so far in this course. Ihei shares many characteristics with Sanjuro, but the ways he differs seem to challenge the conventional cinema prototype of the ronin.

The central problem of the film is Ihei Misawa’s inability to gain employment from a feudal lord. It seems in the past whenever he has become a retainer, there have been difficulties stemming from his contradicting personality traits. Because of this, he travels with his wife from town to town with little money, having to participate in prize- fights to earn income. Another minor conflict is his wife’s opposition to these prize-fights.

In this main conflict, we see the choices of action available to the character: roaming vs. settling down. Initially, Ihei and his wife cannot choose the option to continue traveling because of the heavy rains and consequential impassibility of the high, choppy waters after the rain subsides.

Ihei Misawa displays many of the important tenets of bushido throughout the film. The first time, we learn indirectly of his skill when he wins money in a prize-fight in order to have a festive dinner for the frustrated peasants at the inn where he is staying. He also shows his good character by trying to keep peace between the stringy-haired woman and the old man she accuses of stealing food from her.

The first time we directly observe Ihei’s abilities, he is wandering through the woods and chances upon a group of young men. Two of them are getting ready to have a duel, and he intervenes without really fighting them. His skill at disarming them and his clear intentions not to hurt them reveal another important tenet of bushido: the hesitation to use the sword to kill. Not only is he keeping them from killing each other, but he is not fighting and killing them with his superior abilities.

Another tenet of bushido that Ihei demonstrates is loyalty. It is clear he doesn’t really have to duel the men to earn the job as fencing teacher, but he does so out of loyalty. He fights Lord Shigaeki, but the result of this fight reveals the ‘flaw’ in Ihei’s character: he is too nice. He apologizes profusely for knocking Shigaeki into the water, thus embarrassing his potential boss and being forced to return to the inn in shame. Even in a later scene when people are talking badly about their lord, Ihei demonstrates his loyalty by sticking up for Shigaeki.

Two instances when Ihei Misawa is not following bushido are when he participates in the prize fights and after the duel with Shigaeki. He kills a group of men who ambush him outside the castle. Though it could be argued that his is self-defense, he could have disarmed the men as he did earlier in the film.

Unlike Kurosawa’s Sanjuro, Ihei Misawa demonstrates a slightly different set of values. He tries to assimilate himself with society throughout this movie, and even tells Lord Shigaeki of past failed attempts to settle peacefully in castle towns as a retainer.

Where Sanjuro would have shunned a fancy kimono, Ihei readily accepts his wife’s gift in order to appear more noble for his tour of the castle town. The change in costume almost seems to signify a change from wandering to settlement, if only for a short time.

The fact that Ihei is married is an important difference between himself and Sanjuro. The wife symbolizes settlement and the possibility of children, a near impossibility for a ronin living between meals. There is no point in either Yojimbo or Sanjuro when we can anticipate the possibility of any kind of love interest for the protagonist.

The real noticeable difference between Sanjuro and Ihei is in demeanor. Sanjuro does not care very much about his appearance or about people’s impression of him. He wears a dirty kimono and doesn’t shave. He lounges about, yawning and picking his teeth. Sanjuro talks openly about money, using deception at times to gain it and asking for it at other times. He is very rude to people and displays little respect when speaking.

In this aspect, Ihei is the complete opposite. He carries himself in a dignified manner and maintains a good physical appearance. We actually see him practice his skills when he is alone so he can stay sharp in soul and prowess. He is as polite to the woman who fights with the old man as he is to the Lord of the castle town. In the first scenes of this movie, our first indication that he is different from a Sanjuro-type character is his incessant smiling. He smiles in almost every scene. Ihei doesn’t ask people for money, and tries to turn down the money that Gon’nojo brings to him towards the end of the film.

One of the main themes of this movie is Ihei’s relationship with the other people staying at the inn. At first, his wife does not understand why he tries so hard to help them. Ihei seems to transcend the tenet of benevolence into a universal kindness. He is kind to every person he meets.

There are many examples of this kindness: calming down the angry peasant woman at the beginning, bringing the people at the inn the dinner, and stopping the duel in the woods. These have already been mentioned, but there are other poignant examples of his benevolence. When Ihei fights his second opponent, he shows a genuine interest in whether or not the man is hurt. There are two more occasions when he gives away food, the first one being the fish to the man at the inn, and the second is when he gives the inn people the food that Lord Shigaeki sent back with him after his initial visit to the castle town.

The resolution of the sub-plot comes when Ihei’s wife realizes that his prize-fighting isn’t for pride or to gain money, but ultimately to make people happy with the good deeds that he does. At this point it becomes almost irrelevant whether or not he gets to be fencing teacher for Lord Shigaeki or any retainership at all. Mrs. Misawa tells him to prize-fight if he wants to and dismisses the lord’s vassals with rudeness and acceptance of her husband’s behavior.

The actual ending of the film is very ambiguous, with Lord Shigaeki chasing down Ihei to again offer him the civilized life our protagonist has been seeking from the beginning. Only now Ihei doesn’t really want it. It seems he and his wife are happy just being together, traveling and doing good things for the peasants, which they ultimately see as more rewarding than just staying in a castle town.

On this final point, Koizumi and Kurosawa both seem to agree that their main characters simply cannot assimilate with the society under any circumstances. Even with all his differences from Sanjuro, Ihei Misawa is destined for a life of roaming. Koizumi leaves the film open-ended, with Shigaeki still chasing Ihei. This may be because we already know that Ihei would turn him down, or it may be representative of a larger theme, summing up this entire samurai film genre with two conflicting images: the skilled, wandering protagonist vs. the society which seeks his skills and values to enrich itself.