
Te o tsunagu kora (Children Hand in Hand). 1948. Japan. Directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. Screenplay by Mansaku Itami. With Takashi Hatsama, Akio Sawamura, Jiro Miyata. In Japanese; English subtitles. 86 min.
Though less well known than Susumu Hani’s celebrated 1963 remake, Hiroshi Inagaki’s Children Hand in Hand is nonetheless a heartbreaking portrait of childhood kindness and cruelty—and, by implication, conflicted ideals of masculinity—centering on a small-town boy with a learning disability who attempts to fit in with his classmates.
35mm print courtesy The Japan Foundation and Kadokawa.