page_title: Humanity and Paper Balloons
section_title: Plot
hierarchical_section_title: Humanity and Paper Balloons / Plot
caption_attribution_description: English: Takako Misaki and Kan'emon Nakamura in Ninjō kamifūsen (1937)
context_page_description: Humanity and Paper Balloons is a 1937 black-and-white film directed by Sadao Yamanaka, his last film.
context_section_description: The film is set in feudal Japan during the 18th century, an era known as the Edo period. It depicts the struggles and schemes of Matajuro Unno, a rōnin, or masterless samurai, and his neighbor Shinza, a hairdresser.
  The story begins in a slum where poor families perform menial jobs. Shinza, though a hairdresser by trade, actually makes his living by running illicit gambling rooms and pawning his belongings. Unno, who lives with his wife next door, is the son of Matabei Unno, a great samurai. Since his father's death, Unno has struggled to find work and hopes that Mouri, his father's former master, will hire him after reading a letter from his father. Mouri avoids Unno and finds excuses not to read his father's letter. Nevertheless, Unno seeks out Mouri every day and follows him wherever he goes. Mouri tries to get rid of Unno by sending a gang of men to intimidate him and telling his gate guards to keep him out.
  Unno's wife waits for news that Mouri has hired Unno, but every day he tells her that "he'll meet Mr. Mouri tomorrow." With her husband out of work, she supports him by making kamifusen (Japanese paper balloons). Unno avoids telling her that Mouri keeps rejecting him and starts drinking to forget his humiliation. Despite his worsening situation, however, he keeps his dignity by not accepting gifts, loans, or favors.
  Shinza's story runs in parallel with Unno's, albeit more dramatically. Shinza often gets beaten up by local pawn shop owner Shiroko Ya's gang for money he owes and for secretly organizing gambling games in their territory. Shinza fearlessly disregards their threats, angering the gang and their leader, Genshichi Yatagoro. Shinza loses all of his money when the gang chases him out of a secret gambling den, so he boldly goes to Shiroko's shop to pawn his hairdressing equipment. Upon reaching Shiroko's place unannounced, he finds Shiroko's daughter Okoma and his clerk Chushichi in the midst of a romantic moment. This discovery makes an impression, because Okoma's father and Mouri have already arranged for Okoma to marry the son of a rich old samurai against her will. Chushichi refuses to offer Shinza anything for his hairdressing tools, and Shinza makes up his mind up to avenge himself.
  While this is happening, Unno's wife decides to visit her sister's family. Before leaving, she reminds Unno not to drink too much sake, since he had only recently recovered from an illness. He promises her that he will not drink.
  When Okoma goes out with Chushichi to a festival, Shinza kidnaps her to punish Yatagoro. After learning that Okoma has not come home, Shiroko sends Yatagoro and his gang to pay Shinza quietly with a ransom to preserve the girl's reputation before the wedding. Shinza convinces his neighbor Unno to hide Okoma in his room when Yatagoro and his men search for her. When Yatagoro offers only a small ransom payment, Shinza refuses and tries to humiliate Yatagoro by telling him to shave his head and apologize for treating him so badly. Furious, Yatagoro leaves and sends one of his men to inform Shiroko that Shinza will not let Okoma go. Shinza's landlord, seeing an opportunity to make some money (because neither Shinza nor the other tenants pay the rent very often), goes to Shiroko and negotiates the release of the girl for ten times more money than Yatagoro had initially offered. Although Shinza insists that he does not really care about the ransom, the landlord forces him to accept his share of the money. When Okoma leaves her hiding place in Unno's room to board a palanquin sent by her father, everyone in the neighborhood feels disappointed to see that Unno had participated in a shameful scheme unworthy of a samurai. When Okoma comes home, Chushichi promises that they will run away together.
  Shinza celebrates his victory over Yatagoro and Shiroko by treating all the men from his neighborhood to sake at the local bar. He pressures the hesitant Unno into joining the party. Unno's wife comes back from her sister's just in time to see her husband breaking his promise and heading to the bar. Though unwillin
caption: A scene from the film
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