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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 959

Souls on the Road

192180 minJapan

Synopsis

A musician whose career has collapsed travels through the winter countryside with his wife and child, hoping his father will receive them. Two former prisoners cross their path while seeking a place in society themselves. The different welcomes offered to these travelers expose the consequences of family resentment and the practical importance of compassion toward strangers.

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Video edition: Wikimedia Commons
Original language: No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified.
This copy runs: 80:18
Subtitles: No subtitle track in this language

No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified. No subtitle track in this language.

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Minoru Murata · Public domain

Cast

Kaoru Osanai

Haruko Sawamura

Denmei Suzuki

DirectorsMinoru Murata

Inspirations

Murata brings together elements associated with Gorky's The Lower Depths and Wilhelm Schmidtbonn's Children on the Street. Parallel stories allow contrasting acts of mercy and rejection to comment on one another without giving every traveler the same fate.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film reference Wikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

Denmei Suzuki — キネマ旬報; 『キネマ旬報』1931年3月1日号 · Public domain

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