On today’s episode, we discuss two Mikio Naruse films from 1935 – Three Sisters with Maiden Hearts and Wife! Be Like a Rose! We discuss the visual style of Naruse’s early sound era and how he developed his approach to narrative structure. 

Our latest episodes on Naruse’s films are in conjunction with the retrospective in New York that Japan Society and Metrograph are hosting – “Mikio Naruse: The World Betrays Us.”  The retrospective is also set to travel to Berkeley. BAMPFA will be hosting from July 3 to December 21, 2025. We include the links to the retrospective schedules below:

- New York’s Mikio Naruse retrospective - Mikio Naruse: The World Betrays Us

- Japan Society - https://japansociety.org/film/mikio-naruse-the-world-betrays-us/

- Metrograph - https://metrograph.com/category/mikio-naruse/

- Berkeley’s Mikio Naruse retrospective at BAMPFA - https://bampfa.org/program/mikio-naruse-auteur-salaryman
- A Mikio Naruse Companion by Dan Sallitt - https://mikionaruse.wordpress.com/
- Mikio Naruse: A Master of Japanese Cinema by Audie Bock - https://www.worldcat.org/title/17227763
- Japanese Film Directors by Audie Bock - https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-film-directors-Audie-Bock/dp/0870113046


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