Classic Japanese Cinema Discussion Thread

Tsugaru jongarabushi , Jongara, aka Tsugaru Folksong (1973)  is an outstanding multi faceted drama from director Koichi Saito  He came to prominence in the early 1970s with a series of thought provoking movies about young people escaping from themselves, searching for their identities, fleeing the big city to the natural settings of remote home communities.  Selected as the best film of 1973 in the Kinema Junpo Poll of Critics, & deservedly so, winning Best Film, Best Director, and Best Actress for Kyoko Enami.  Deeply engaging performances, a diverse cast of characters. Absolutely stunning location/outdoor filming on and near The Tsugaru Peninsula, at the northern end of Honshū island.   Accompanied with beautifully composed traditional Japanese folk song played on the shamisen, the region having a distinctive style and instument, Tsugaru-jamisen. A rich and deeply compelling drama, little known with only 30 ratings at IMDb, followed the excellent drama/thriller Yakusoku (1972)