Silent . Black and White . 71 minutes

Shochiku Kamata Studio

Written By
Noda Kogo
Ikeda Tadao
Komiya Syutaro (novel)

Cinematography
Aoki Isamu

Cast
Iwata Yukichi (Mr Kajiwara)
Yoshikawa Mitsuko (Chieko)
Ohikata Den (Sadao)
Kato Seiichi (Sadao as a Child)
Mitsui Hodeo (Kosaku)
Normura Shusei (Kosaku as a Child)
Okazaki (Nara Shinyo)
Mitsukawa Kyoko (Kazuko)
Ryu Chishu (Hattori)
Aizome Yumeko (Mitsuko)
Iida Choko (Maid)

Synopsis
The Kajiwara family's carefree life is shattered when the patriarch dies of a heart attack. Eight years later, the elder son Sadao discovers that he is not his mother Chieko's biological son. He rejects her love until he is upbraided by a family friend. They move to a more modest home in the country but when the boys reach college age, Chieko's favoritism to her stepson causes a rift in the household, and Sadao runs away to live with a prostitute. Chieko begs him to come home but his cruel words infuriate even the brothel's maid. Eventually, he repents and returns to her fold.

Thoughts from Ozu
This film, whose leitmotif is the decline of a distinguished family, could do with a more refined script. One might have got away with it today, but back then, such a flimsy plot couldn't have passed for a movie. For this reason, I fleshed out the narrative by introducing a pair of brothers whose relationship becomes strained because they don't share the same birth mother. Such a contrivance actually mars the film, but it still left a deep impression on me, as my father passed away during the filming.

Personal Thoughts and Comments
A Mother Should Be Loved is more melodramatic material then Ozu’s best work. The story centers around two brothers that are alienated after the older one secretly discovers their widowed mother is really his stepmother. The film is missing the first and last reels (a lot of which are titles), which detailed the joyful routines of family life with the mother, two sons, and the father, who dies of a heart attack. What survives centers around the central story of the two sons. Made during the death of Ozu’s father, A Mother Should Be Loved takes a look into the separation of the family, a theme he would continue to develop throughout his postwar masterpieces. This film is more plot driven and overall not as powerful as his greatest work, but it is an interesting film to see the early developments of his themes and style.