The love between teacher and student that created ``The Spy's Wife.'' Interview with Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, and Ichi Nohara [Director's Interview Vol.84]

The female image in “The Spy’s Wife” was influenced by that director.

Q: Personally, I found it very refreshing to see the film cover the part that director Kurosawa had previously talked about, ``I like escapades between men and women,'' and also to introduce deception into that.

Kurosawa: In this movie, the husband played by Issei Takahashi does something really terrible (lol). He deceives and neglects his wife by saying, ``I am a cosmopolitan, and what I pledge allegiance to is universal justice.''

However, his wife replies, ``All I want is to be with you.'' In order to maintain that love, even after betraying my husband, I can still say those words. When I read the script, I was impressed by how well and convincingly the wife played by Aoi Yu was able to portray the thoughts and principles of action that are so dramatic and contradictory when you really think about it.

Men are inconvenient because they are logical. Women are free because their logic has collapsed. No, it was truly amazing.

Q: I feel that the way women are portrayed in the scripts that you worked on, including the part you just mentioned, is interesting. How does this kind of character depiction come about?

Hamaguchi: Well...I probably shouldn't say this (lol), but one of my references is director Yasuzo Masumura. Well, I really like it. I hope that someday, in my work, I will be able to experience the wonder of meeting someone who acts out of love and destroys everything else - Is it okay to break the rules of the world so much? I feel like Masumura's love for his works is clearly showing this time.

It would be a huge leap forward if it were set in the present day, but I felt it fit well in a historical setting. There were also some parts where the brush stroked all over (lol).

Kurosawa: I just heard it for the first time, but I didn't want to hear it (lol). If someone told me to do Masumura, I wouldn't be able to do it (lol).

Hamaguchi: I'm glad I didn't say that...

Kurosawa: There was definitely a moment when I thought to myself, ``Is this Masumura's work...?'' However, I also told myself not to think about it. Because Fumiko Wakao isn't there... That's why you were right to hide it from me (lol). If I had listened to it beforehand, it might have turned out a completely different piece.

Hamaguchi: (laughs). However, the parts that Kurosawa added were wonderful. Mr. Kurosawa also added the part where Satoko (Yu Aoi) synchronizes with Yusaku's (Issei Takahashi) justice and the final development, which we would never have thought of. I think he was able to reach that point because of his well-crafted character and his persuasiveness. There's an incredible leap at the end, but it's very effective.

I was looking forward to director Kurosawa's "fixes".