

She is now a war widow, but he hasn’t been able to find her since. Its protagonist is a naval veteran named Reikichi who clings to a love letter from his former lover who informs him she is to be married to someone else against her wishes. Love Letter takes place in a post war Japan. However, Tanaka’s romance drama titled, Love Letter premiered in the 1954 Cannes Film Festival.

It was extremely difficult in the 1950’s for women to maintain leadership positions in the film industry due to the pressures of a patriarchally run society and economy. (The first being Tazuko Sakane, who famously wore men’s clothing and whose work was tragically lost in time). The second ever woman to direct a movie in Japan was Kinuyo Tanaka.
