War and Peace
(“Senso to heiwa”)
1947 / B&W / 35mm / 100 min
Directors: Yamamoto Satsuo, Kamei Fumio
Script: Yasumi Toshio
Photography: Miyajima Yoshio
Editing: Imaizumi Yoshitama
Sound: Kuga Masatoshi
Music: Iida Nobuo
Art Director: KawatoYasuhide
Cast: Ikebe Ryo, Kishi Hatae, Ito Hajime, Okubo Tsubasa
Production Company, Source: Toho
In 1946, one of the major concessions won by the Toho employees union in its first and second disputes with Toho was that union representatives could attend the company’s planning meetings. Kamei, a leader during the disputes, suggested at the planning meeting that this film be produced to commemorate Constitution Day. The planning council also produced other films such as One Wonderful Sunday (“Subarashiki nichiyobi,” dir. Kurosawa Akira, 1947), To the End of the Silver Capped Mountains (“Ginrei no hate,” dir. Taniguchi Senkichi, 1947), Spring Awakens (“Haru no mezame,” dir. Naruse Mikio, 1947) and Actress (“Joyu,” dir. Kinugasa Teinosuke, 1947). In War and Peace, a wife remarries after receiving official notification that her husband has died, but her first husband comes back. The film uses the structure of both drama and actuality film (of which Fighting Soldiers is an example) to show the tragedy of this double marriage. Because Kamei did not have sufficient narrative filmmaking experience, Toho assigned him to co-direct it with Yamamoto Satsuo. As a result of A Japanese Tragedy and War and Peace, Kamei became a standard-bearer of the democratic film.