“The Wife’s Confession” (also known as “A Wife Confesses”) is a courtroom drama directed by Yasuzo Masumura, who worked at Daiei Film alongside Kenji Mizoguchi or Kon Ichikawa, but to this day is not as recognizable as other post-war Japanese filmmakers. Although the leading actress, Ayako Wakao, won the award for the Best Actress in 1962 at Kinema Junpo Awards, and Blue Ribbon Awards, the movie gained popularity only in the 21st century. It was screened at the 17th Athens International Film Festival, the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival, and the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
The Wife’s Confession is screening at Camera Japan
The story, written by Masato Ide based on the novel by Masaya Maruyama, presents a trial – a young woman, Ayako (Ayako Wakao), is accused of murdering her husband (Eitaro Ozawa) while on a mountaineering expedition. The alleged motive for this crime is her desire to escape an unhappy marriage and spend the rest of her life with another man (Hiroshi Kawaguchi).
The structure of “The Wife’s Confession” is straightforward, and the narrative is rather easy to follow, as the court scenes are shown alternately with events from the past. The only confusing elements might be the unannounced time jumps, but even those shouldn’t be difficult to understand. Through testimonies made by various characters, as well as retrospections, the audience uncovers details about her life and, most importantly, how her husband treated her. After 30 minutes or so, the movie gradually deviates from the question “did she do it?”, and concentrates more and more on the patriarchal system and if such a crime could be justified.
Although the presentation of the harsh reality of women’s lives in Japan in the 60s feels on point, the critique of the society led by men falls a little flat due to the grotesque portrayal of Ayako’s husband. The character played by Hiroshi Kawaguchi has exclusively bad qualities. He is not very interested in his wife sexually, not to mention her well-being, as he prefers to spend time with his colleagues getting drunk, or go to the mountains alone. He says that the reason he doesn’t want a divorce is he “likes things just as they are”, but the motivation for his embittered behavior towards Ayako is unclear.
The performance by Ayako Wakao, who is considered one of the biggest Japan’s stars of the 20th century, is terrific, as she portrays an emotional and lively character. She does so in a manner that might leave the audience guessing her true intentions for a considerable part of the story. Worth mentioning is that the music by Riichiro Manabe and the cinematography by Setsuo Kobayashi are so well-fitting that their presence in the movie is almost unnoticeable.
Although “The Wife’s Confession” starts as a courtroom film, it might as well be considered a romantic melodrama, especially because of its impassioned ending. Overall, it is a solid movie experience that feels relevant even after more than 60 years sincer its premiere. It may not be the most light-hearted picture in terms of the topics it covers, but its form definitely makes it accessible.
