SOURCE : "Ugetsu: A Meditation on Mizoguchi," in Favorite Movies: Critics' Choice, edited by Philip Nobile, Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1973, pp. 61-9.

In the following essay, explains why Mizoguchi's Ugetsu is one of his favorite films, noting the continuing mystery and inaccessibility of Mizoguchi's work.

When I was asked to contribute to [Favorite Movies: Critics' Choices], I had two options: I could have said yes or I could have said no. If I had said no, that would have been the end of the affair. My integrity, my scruples, my sanctity, my aversion to the hysteria of hyperbole would have remained inviolate. I could then scoff at colleagues who participated in such blatantly promotional enterprises as a "favorite film anthology." Having said yes, however, I would seem to be morally obligated to play by the rules of the game. And these rules do not allow setting one's self up...