Oshima’s magisterial epic, centering on the ambivalent surviving heir of the Sakurada clan, uses ritual and the microcosm of the traditional family to trace the rise and fall of militaristic Japan across several decades. “However dense the allegory, though, Oshima keeps it very accessible to his audience by stressing individuals’ feelings as much as ceremonies; their dreams, aspirations, frustrations and agonies are all too familiar” —Time Out Film.