Kabei: Our Mother is a drama set in the 1940s directed by veteran Japanese filmmaker Yoji Yamada.  Professor Shigeru (played by Mitsugoro Bando) expresses his views on the war and invasion of China. He is accused of being a communist and thrown in jail. With Shigeru out of the house, life suddenly changes for his wife Kayo (played by Sayuri Yoshinaga), who works exhaustively to maintain the household and care for her two daughters. The film serves up emotion as Kayo is determined to keep her household in tact. Meanwhile her father ,a conservative police man, disapproves of her husband and cruelly lets her know. Part of the movie’s success is a result of the interaction between Kayo and a former male student of her husband (Tadanobu Asano).

Photos © KABEI-Our Mother Film Partners.