What Price Love?

Set in the middle of the Edo period (1603-1867), this tragic love story takes its cue from a celebrated historical case tried by magistrate Tadasuke Ooka, whose shrewd legal decisions became the stuff of legend. Okuma Shirokoya, the daughter of a lumber merchant in Edo (today’s Tokyo), embarked on an affair and was executed after conspiring with her maid to murder her husband. (Source: https://festival.ilcinemaritrovato.it/en/proiezione/shirokoya-komako/)

Directed by Kenji Misumi, What Price Love? leans on a strong ensemble — Fujiko Yamamoto, Katsuhiko Kobayashi, Mieko Kondō — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 1960.