Movie Review: Drunken Angel

Sanada, a small-town doctor with an alcohol problem is called on to treat Matsunaga, an injured Yakuza member, and detects some warning signs of tuberculosis. The two butt heads repeatedly over possible treatment—Matsunaga not willing to show weakness, and Sanada not willing to let the matter go. Meanwhile, Okada, the former boss of the area, is released from prison, and is looking to take back what he believes is his, which includes Dr. Sanada’s assistant Miyo.

Of course, the great significance here is our first pairing of Kurosawa directing Toshiro Mifune, who would go on to work together on sixteen films. Mifune’s Matsunaga is, of course, excellent—always walking the fine line between the man in charge he wants to portray, and the man living in fear of his own failing health. I’m almost more impressed by Takashi Shimura’s Sanada here, though. I’ll admit to having a soft spot for Shimura’s work with Kurosawa as well, but in each of the earlier films, he was mostly relegated to small parts, and not given much room to stretch his legs in the role. Here, he finally comes alive with a part that feels like a perfect fit. Sanada is a doctor who does good work, but is clearly held back by his own vices as well.

One of my favorite things about Kurosawa’s directing style is that, while his films often take a moral stance, there’s rarely the sense that he is using that moral stance as a platform for judgment. By that I mean that his characters are often allowed to make mistakes or engage in what we—and the film—identify as bad behavior, but that those behaviors usually don’t come to define the characters. In most directors’ hands, Sanada’s alcoholism would become some form of overt burden for him. It would become the instrument of his downfall or the hurdle he would need to overcome. For Kurosawa, however, it is simply one facet of the man. When he calls Matsunaga a coward for ignoring his shortcomings, we can see both that he’s speaking from well-informed experience, and that he’s being a hypocrite. He’s neither rewarded for his efforts nor punished for his vices, though, and both aspects of the character are richer for that.

I’ve always found Drunken Angel to be a somewhat shaky story, but polished up to a brilliant shine. It feels almost as though it changes protagonists about halfway through, moving away from Sanada’s quest to get through to Matsunaga, and instead becomes the story of Matsunaga losing his position and his status alongside his health. I’ve always wanted a bit more from this portion of the film. When Matsunaga decides to confront Okada, his motives are murky. Is he looking for revenge for Okada knocking him down a peg? Is he trying to protect Dr. Sanada and Miyo? The truth could be either, or both, but we don’t really get a look that far behind the curtain. The ambiguity of his reasons can work, but I feel like the story it’s telling runs out of gas more so than carries itself to a satisfying conclusion.

However, as much as the big picture might not quite gel for me, I can’t deny that this movie oozes style in a way that Kurosawa’s earlier efforts didn’t, and it feels like the first time that he’s really hitting his stride and finding his own visual language. Between that and two dynamite leads playing off each other, and some inspired music selection, it’s impossible for me not to like Drunken Angel, even if I don’t quite love it.

Overall Grade: A-

Noteworthy Shots: After Matsunaga agrees to follow Dr. Sanada’s orders, he wanders the town, picking a flower from one of the stalls while he thinks about his commitment to his own health. In that moment, Okada announces his return, and thoughtlessly, Matsunaga tosses the flower aside, into the muck. This one bad influence was all it took for him to toss his newfound commitment aside. Later, he tries again. This time he picks the flower from the vendor, but is told he can’t take that. He had his chance and he threw it away; now he finds it’s not so simple as picking up where he left off.