elvircorhodzic THE BAD SLEEP WELL is a crime drama about corruption, greed and responsibilities in a post-war Japanese corporation. This movie is a kind of contrast of American political noirs, which have dealt with similar themes.The news reporters comment and gossip at a wedding of a daughter of a Vice President in a famous corporation. The police interrupt the wedding when a corporate assistant officer is arrested on charges of bribery. This incident is similar to an earlier scandal after which, an Assistant Chief has committed suicide. Following the wedding, the police question a corporate assistant officer and an accountant about their bribery of government officials. After police investigation, one of them commits murder. The second was saved by a mysterious avenger...This is a tragic story in a corporate policy and corrupt society. Mr. Kurosawa, given the style and themes of the film, has introduced a serious farce. He has threw a dose of an inopportune and cynical humor in the story. An avenger is a discreetly face from behind. This concept is definitely brilliant. The director has palliated disturbing scenes with a touch of political irony. However, the pace and direction are quite slow, so the film becomes boring in the second part. It is also the biggest flaw in the film.The characterization is excellent, because Mr. Kurosawa did not kill humanity in his characters. Toshiro Mifune (Kōichi Nishi) is a clumsy groom as an avenger from the shadow. This is, regardless of duality in his character, a pale performance of Mr. Mifune. Love is a disturbing factor in his case. It is the highlight of cynicism. His greatest weakness and his salvation at the same time is Yoshiko (Kyōko Kagawa), the daughter of his greatest enemy and his wife. Antagonists, Takashi Shimura (Moriyama), Kō Nishimura (Shirai) are tragicomic. Masayuki Mori (Public Corporation Vice President Iwabuchi) is very convincing as the basis of corruption. Kamatari Fujiwara (Chief Wada) is a penitent who has risen.End of the film is quite dark. The great evil has won, but every victory has its price.

WILLIAM FLANIGAN Viewed on DVD. The "Iron Triangle" is a label often applied to inherently corrupt (by the standards of most Giajin) and inclusive business relationships consisting of government ministry bureaucrats, a major financial institution, and a large corporate monopoly where each is in the pockets of the others (to, of course, gain/retain power and get rich before and/or after "retirement"). Script (and its execution) in this film has it's moments, both good and bad. Among the latter: a mother who conveniently (and within seconds) finds an old funeral photo that just happens to include Toshira Mifune (who is her illegitimate son) that looks like a PR shot; and a glass of wine laced with poison (or so we are lead to believe) that turns out to be a sedative. Very uneven direction: players like Mifune and actress Kyoko Kagawa deliver restrained, solid, and believable performances; others are allowed to over act to the point of becoming self caricatures and cartoon figures. Kagawa's role is small, but critical. She projects the fundamental sweetness of her character to the point of stealing most of the scenes she is in. Deep focus cinematography (where both the foreground and background are in focus) is most impressive. Foley (i.e., dubbed sound effects) is marginal: even those wearing sandals or men's shoes sound like they have high heels on! The music score is, well, simply terrible: it grates on the ears and greatly distracts from rather than adding to the film experience. All in all, an OK movie, but no cigar. WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

George Roots (GeorgeRoots) At a 2 hour 30 Minute running time, "The Bad Sleep Well" dips and dives as its narrative progresses. When I left my seat at the end however, I realised I had suddenly felt extremely satisfied and particularly moved at how events unfolded and how brutally honest they were portrayed in its characters and presentation.At a lavish wedding, a birthday cake is anonymously sent depicting an office building marked with a cross on the window where the groom's father committed suicide some time prior. This of course leads to discomfort for all attending, and in the next few weeks more and more unusual schemes seem to be affecting the company and some target officials. Who could possibly be doing this and for what gain or reason? What has remained particularly strong throughout the years is how Kurosawa has staged his conversations in this movie, there's a lot of them and rarely does he often cut from one face to the other. It's all done in superbly staged medium close up shots, and the performances of Kurosawa regulars Takashi Shimura, Toshiro Mifune and return of Masayuki Mori from "Rashomon" (1950), is all wonderfully worth checking out.Final Verdict: Not much to say other than it's another one of Kurosawa's best outside of his Samurai epics, and a great "pseudo" Shakespearean tale also. 9/10.

kusagami94 ''Japanese legend Toshiro Mifune plays Koichi Nishi, the seemingly stoic bridegroom who is trying to get ahead by marrying the boss's daughter, Kieko (Kyoko Kagawa), who was crippled as a girl. The bride's brother, in a shocking display, exposes the groom's motives during his wedding toast and threatens his new brother-in-law with death if he disappoints his sister. But Nishi is not who we think. He was born the illegitimate son of the man who Kieko's father, Iwabuchi (Maysayuki Mori), manipulated into suicide. Now Nishi wants revenge for his father's death. As Nishi slowly destroys Iwabuchi's life, he makes the fatal error of falling in love with his wife, who already loves him. Their unconsummated marriage stands between these two like a palpable pillar of stone. But just when we think the stone has been tossed aside by love, Iwabuchi finds out who his son-in-law really is.Shot in black and white, this film falls just short of being brilliant. Mifune is amazing in his portrayal of this complex man who lets his father's past destroy his own future, and Maysayuki Mori's performance as the evil Iwabuchi is understated but nonetheless chilling.''~Luanne Brown