A Wife Confesses

Yasuzo Masumura's 1961 film A Wife Confesses, shown last night at Japan Society, is one of the best revivals I've seen in some time. This shot conveys a little of Masumura's greatness at composing and framing for the wide screen, clearly showing the influence of Antonioni with whom he studied at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome. The film combines noir, melodrama and modern alienation to tell the story of a woman on trial for murder following a mountain-climbing accident involving her abusive older husband and the handsome younger man she loves. Did she kill her husband deliberately and cold-bloodedly or in self-preservation? Jonathan Rosenbaum has ranked this as one of the 100 best films ever. It's a riveting, beautifully composed but rarely seen masterpiece.