Five Men in a Circus
1935The main focus is on the 5 member band of a small circus as it runs into problems while touring rural Japan. It also pays lots of attention to the two daughters of the aging and irascible ringmaster-circus owner. The high points are the sound (and score) and cinematography featuring a lot of vertiginous panning (appropriate - as high wire trapeze artists are also an important element in the film). A fascinating side-light on 30s Japan.
Acted in
Heihachirō Ōkawa
as Kokichi
Hiroshi Uruki
as Torakichi
Kamatari Fujiwara
as Tadakichi
Riki Miyagawa
as Rokuta
Ko Mihashi
as Seiroku
Sadao Maruyama
as Chief Travelling Circus
Koji Kaga
as Kunio, the acrobat
Kajiya Morino
as Matsumoto the Manager
Masako Tsutsumi
as Chiyoko
Ryuko Umezono
as Sumiko
Masako Sanjo
as Equilibrist in giant ball
Nijiko Kiyokawa
as Okiyo