What Made Her Do It? (何が彼女をそうさせたか)

A SANPORD PRESENTATION

"What made her do it?"

This silent film appeared in 1930. It was appreciated

as a masterpiece of the "proletarian film" genre at the time.

Unfortunately, it was cut into pieces later on and seemed to

have been lost until it was found, that the film had been saved,

at the Gosfilmofond Russian National Film Library.

However, the Russian version is not complete.

The beginning and important scenes at the end are missing.

In order to reconstruct the film the best way possible,

all materials relating to it were researched

and short titles for the missing scenes were prepared.

The production company, Teikoku Kinema. 1929

What made her do it?

Directed by Shigeyoshi Suzuki

Sumiko is played by Keiko Takatsu

Life is a path of suffering

that leads to death.

Dark, gloomy clouds - late autumn

Neverending dark glittering railroad track:

a symbol of a deserted life.

Sumiko Nakamura: a lonely girl drags herself beside the track.

Her shabby appearance: a symbol of her life.

A noisy train passes by.

Girls on a class outing waving their hands.

They all seem happy.

Following the train with her eyes, the girl struggles forward.

Tears on her face...

Fatigue. She takes out a slice of bread and eats it

as if she were starving to death.

It's the last one.

She's totally desperate but still has to go on.

Suddenly her wooden sandal is broken.

The girl doesn't know where to go.

She is saved by a poor old man.

The poor man is old Doi, a rickshaw man.

"Have something to eat, first of all.

We can do everything else, later on."

"Where are you going?"

"My uncle is living in Nitta."

"My father told me to give this to him."

"Sorry, but I can't read."

"There is no school in my village.

My uncle is supposed to sent me to school."

"You are probably quite tired. Go to bed.

Tomorrow morning, we have to leave early."

The next morning.

"Look, there is Nitta."

"This is the way to Nitta."

"Thank you very much."

"Take care and ask a policeman how to get there."

"I'll be back during my school holidays."

A policeman shows her the way to her uncle's house.

This is Kanta Yamada, her uncle in Nitta.

"My father told me, that all is written down there..."

"To whom belongs this child?"

"She is my brother's daughter.

I haven't heard from him for quite a long time.

Now he sends me somebody like this."

We haven't heards from each other for a long time,

but I hope you are all well.

Due to long unemployment and illness, we can't go on,

I don't want to burden you with her,

but, please, take care of Sumiko.

"My brother committed suicide. This is his last will."

"This is mine!"

"You spent all our money drinking."

"Do you have to quarrel all the time?"

"Sumiko, from now on you are one of our children."

"In this letter, it says that we're going to take care of you."

"Uncle, please let me go to school right away."

"To school?"

"You don't have to go to school,

because I'll teach you all need to know."

"You'll be lucky here. Life is easy here."

"Where have you been? Look at the poor little baby."

"Just wait a bit. As soon as the others have finished,

you can have dine peacefully."

"That's the girl I told you about.

Sumiko, this man is a good acquaintance of your father."

"You have grown up, haven't you? You are like your father."

"When you were a little girl, I often carried you in my arms."

"Hurry up, this man will give you a good education."

"Are you going to send me to school?"

"I'll be ready in a minute."

"Thanks to father's good acquaintance,

from now on, I can go to school. I'll work hard."

"The girl is valuable, although she has a lot to learn."

"Father, I'll be back."

"Oh, the old rickshaw man gave me a silver coin."

"She'll be very profitable."

Her father' s letter.

"Sumiko, you are my daughter, now."

"You're so lucky."

"I'll write a letter to my father. He'll certainly be giad."

Sold to a circus - the girl.

Beautiful clothes, various lessons...

What the man said is true...

"Don't move, otherwise you'll be hurt badly."

"In the end, that girl will be stabbed to death."

"Please, please, let me go back to my father!"

"Stupid girl! We paid so much money for you, how could I let you go?"

"We're on our own, we are orphans."

"I'm not an orphan, my father is alive."

"Look, that's my father."

"There... what's written here? Read it to me, Shintaro."

"Let the clown Kuma read it."

"Kuma, can you read this to Sumiko?"

"Your father is..."

"Your father committed suicide... he is dead."

"Dead? My father is... dead!"

As the days go by, time heals her sorrow.

But at the circus everything is going on as usual.

"We can' t stand it anymore. We don't have enough to eat."

"Look, the mouse is labouring just the same way we do."

"We're working ourselves to death

and who is getting the money from it?"

"Who stole my money?"

"Whose purse is this?"

"I don' t steal the money.

I've been saving money for quite some time."

"Don't tell me lies. You can't have saved so much money."

"Just confess! You thief."

"Perhaps, we don't taught her enough good manners."

"Master, stop it! Just a minute,

I would like to tell you something.

"Sumiko, stop crying. I can't stand it any longer,

either, let's run away."

The midnight bell: the signal.

"If you don't listen to us, we'll do what we want anyway."

"I spent good money on you. You'd better not do that!"

"I can't stand to see the boss' face anymore. Let's run away."

During the turmoil,

Sumiko and Shintaro manage to escape from the circus.

"Now, we're safe.

The village Yui, where my sister is living, is nearby."

"I'll go ask for directions."

"Shintaro, please, hurry back."

"I'll be back soon, stay here."

"He jumped out unexpectedly."

"There is no hospital in this village.

You have to go to the next one."

A bad twist of fate, Shintaro and Sumiko are separated.

One year later. We find her at an unexpected piace.

At a police station.

Used as an agent by thieves - the girl.

"You, poor girl. They were only using you."

"The greedy thieves just treat you badly and exploit you."

Once she got away, but the head thief Sahei

pursued and caught her. She became a pawn for

the thieves once again. - the girl.

Sahei's caught stealing and she is entrusted to a privately -

owned poor house.

the poor house

At night.

"You can't breast-feed with the food they give us here."

"Working all day long,

we deserve better food."

"Oamn! Who can we complain to? It's a private home."

"The director pockets everything."

"Let me hold the baby for you"

Sumiko has various memories...

the old rickshaw man, Shintaro.

"Thank you very much, the baby has fallen asleep."

"You'll be engaged as a maid in the house of Yoshio Akiyama,

the town councillor."

"You really got a good job. I envy you."

"Goodbye and don't forget us."

"We'll meet again... with the baby too."

"Goodbye, baby."

She is empioyed as servant of Yoshio Akiyama,

the town councillor - the girl.

"The young lady of the house has come home."

"Sumiko, go, serve the young lady."

"Miss, should we play some jazz?"

"Are you trying to kill my daughter?"

"She says the fish hasn' t been boned."