REVIEW: ‘When a Woman Ascends the Stairs’ to play NYC’s Metrograph
Photo: When a Woman Ascends the Stairs stars a powerful Hideko Takamine, left. Photo courtesy of Toho Co. Ltd. / Provided by the Metrograph with permission.
New York City’s Japan Society and Metrograph have been taking a deep dive into the career of auteur Mikio Naruse, with a two-month series that showcases his evocative cinematic art. The Japan Society hosted the first part, and now the Metrograph is about to kick off a few weeks of screenings.
One of the best titles that will be screened in Naruse’s When a Woman Ascends the Stairs from 1960. This black-and-white drama is touching and revelatory. One can find numerous modern-day parallels, including the power of a woman in a male-dominated world, which elevate this remarkable work about a bar hostess named Keiko, winningly played by Hideko Takamine.
In the movie, Keiko is a widow and stuck in a workplace predicament. She has grown tired of the job, which requires late nights at a number of bars in the Ginza section of Tokyo. The title is pulled from these hostesses needing to “ascend the stairs” of each and every bar on a nightly basis. Within these establishments, they drink and talk with a variety of suitors, men who head to the district to unwind after a long day in a suit and tie.
Keiko is caught in between two competing thoughts. She’s wants to be finished with her time as a bar hostess, yet she’s also uniquely qualified to begin an establishment of her own. She’d like to find financial backers who can bankroll her idea of a trendy bar where she calls the shots as the patrons drink the shots. She leans on her current clients to help her out, but it becomes obvious that Keiko will need to forge her own way in this world of diminished opportunities for women.
The character of Keiko is someone who is yearning and demanding respect and self-enterprise from the community around her. She is determined to be a trailblazer and elevate her professional life to be a leader on the Ginza scene.
Takamine’s performance is what anchors the exquisite film. She is a combination of multiple feelings and attributes, from strong to uncertain, from confident to nervous. Watching her navigate this nightlife is a real treat because she’s caught between the conservative 1950s and the switchover to the more accepting 1960s. She’s a beacon of her era, a woman who sees the door opening (finally!) and wants to open it farther.
Naruse has created a dreamy landscape for Takamine’s Keiko to live and work in. The black-and-white footage shot by cinematographer Masao Tamai is something to behold. The images and scenes are dripping with neon and various shades of darkness. There’s a mystery in every visualization, brought on by the unique nighttime landscape. Seeing this on the big screen at the Metrograph seems like a must-watch.
When a Woman Ascends the Stairs is a perfect showcase of Naruse’s skills and a fitting addition to the series Mikio Naruse: The World Betrays Us: Part II, which continues at the Metrograph in Manhattan through June 29.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960). In Japanese with English subtitles. Directed by Mikio Naruse. Written by Ryûzô Kikushima. Starring Hideko Takamine. Running time: 111 minutes. Rating: 
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