Sansho the Bailiff

Sansho the Bailiff
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Kenji Mizoguchi
Screenplay by	Fuji Yahiro Yoshikata Yoda
Based on	"Sansho the Bailiff" by Mori Ōgai
Produced by	Masaichi Nagata
Starring	Kinuyo Tanaka Yoshiaki Hanayagi Kyōko Kagawa Eitarō Shindō
Cinematography	Kazuo Miyagawa
Edited by	Mitsuzo Miyata
Music by	Fumio Hayasaka Tamekichi Mochizuki Kinshichi Kodera
Distributed by	Daiei Film
Release date	March 31, 1954 (1954-03-31)
Running time	124 minutes
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Sansho the Bailiff (Japanese: 山椒大夫, Hepburn: Sanshō Dayū, known by its Japanese title in the United Kingdom and Ireland^[1]) is a 1954 Japanese period film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi based on a 1915 short story of the same name by Mori Ōgai (translated as "Sanshō the Steward" in English), which in turn was based on a sekkyō-bushi [ja] (oral lore) appearing in written form in the 17th century.^[2][3] It follows two aristocratic children who are sold into slavery.

Sansho the Bailiff bears many of Mizoguchi's hallmarks, such as portrayals of poverty and elaborately choreographed long takes. Today, the film is often ranked alongside Ugetsu (1953) as one of Mizoguchi's finest works.^[4]