Takashi Shimura is impressive in this slightly squalid tale of a dipsomaniac doctor ("Sanada") charged with caring for a population housed in a bombed out part of the city. A large stagnant pond amidst their community is as likely to prove a source of toxicity as the pervading Yakuza activities. Those centre around "Matsunaga" (Toshirô Mifune) who turns up at the surgery with an injured hand. The...
