Film

Shining Love

1931 · 38m · Drama

Created by Shochiku’s cultural film department on behalf of the Ministry of Education, this film tells an ironic anecdote juxtaposing the fate of a cooper’s son with that of the son of a middle-class salaried worker, and championing the virtues of honest poverty and diligence. An educational film preaching a fable-like message, it is however filled with humorous scenes that offset the film’s didacticism. Original director Yoshio Nishio fell ill and was replaced halfway through the shooting by the admired filmmaker Hiroshi Shimizu; though finished in May 1931, the film was shelved and never given a general release. Shot as a silent film, this version of the film features musical accompaniment, sound effects, and a spoken commentary track by a benshi narrator, thus bearing witness to the variety of forms taken by sound film during this transitional period.

Shoichi Nodera

Teruyo Hayami

Shoichi Kofujita

Shin'ichirô Komura

Ryuko Fuji

• Hiroshi ShimizuDirector
• Yoshio NishioDirector
• Hiroomi MatsuzakiWriter

Release date

May 7, 1931

Status

Released

Original language

Japanese

Runtime

38m

Genres

Drama