Crime,Drama Japan
In the film "Double Suicide of Sonezaki," set in 1703 Japan, the story revolves around the lives of a rich merchant named Jihei and the beautiful courtesan named Koharu. Jihei is already married and has a family, but he is deeply in love with Koharu and desires to be with her.
However, the rigid social structure of the time prohibits a samurai like Jihei from having a relationship with a courtesan. As Jihei's love for Koharu grows, he finds himself torn between his duty to his family and his yearning for true love.
Meanwhile, the emergence of a new merchant class is challenging traditional samurai culture and causing societal transformations. The social fabric and the established social contract begin to unravel, opening doors for corruption and exploitation by unscrupulous individuals.
One such instance of exploitation occurs when Jihei's rich merchant employer gives him an I.O.U. instead of paying him his wages. When Jihei, now impoverished, presents the I.O.U. to the merchant, demanding his rightful payment, the merchant denies ever writing it and accuses Jihei of attempting to defraud him. Enraged, the merchant orders his henchmen to beat Jihei mercilessly.
Distraught over his situation, Jihei contemplates using suicide as a form of social protest and to escape the societal constraints that prevent him from being with Koharu. At the same time, Koharu, feeling trapped by her occupation, also contemplates suicide as her only way out.
Thus, "Double Suicide of Sonezaki" explores themes of forbidden love, societal constraints, social exploitation, and the use of suicide as a form of protest during a time of significant cultural and societal change in Japan.