Ginza Cosmetics (1951)

Be careful of men who tell you what you want to hear

Ginza Cosmetics was a bittersweet slice of life about a middle-aged single mother who worked as a bar hostess. Tanaka Kinuyo imbued the working mom with a quiet resilience as she faced whatever challenges and opportunities came her way.

Yukiko looks at the world through clear eyes. She works hard to maintain her dignity and reputation while also acknowledging that being a hostess can’t last forever. Yukiko works with women her age and ones much younger. She takes Kyoko under her wing and steers her away from the post-work behavior of some of the other hostesses. Her son, Haruo, is a free-range child, though Yukiko’s landlords and neighbors keep an eye on the boy. Problems arise at the bar-a customer doesn’t pay which comes out of the hostess’ pocket and the bar itself is in financial trouble. Yukiko makes an effort to resolve the problems though she doesn’t always meet with success. She’s offered the chance to have a patron and through an act of fate also meets an available man. For the first time in a long time, she’s able to have an intelligent conversation and feels the pull of possible affection. Perhaps even a way out of the life she’s living.

Yukiko was an interesting character. She was well educated and well mannered. No mention was made of how she ended up in the bar. While others said she should find employment elsewhere, the employment reality for women may have precluded such an opportunity, especially during and right after the war. In contrast to the younger women who wore western dresses and heels at the bar, Yukiko dressed in a traditional kimono. She bore no shame for Haruo who was born out of wedlock, instead knowing it was the man who abandoned her when she became pregnant who had earned that shame. No matter what others did, she refused to supplement her income in after hours trysts with customers. The clock of time was ticking louder and she heard it, knowing she wouldn’t be able to remain a hostess forever. For the moment, she focused on earning a living in order to raise her son. When negative situations occurred, she kept her head and worked around them. No histrionics, no blame game, she just dug down a little deeper and held on. Though she believed most men were animals, she still never became so jaded that she wouldn’t reach out to help those in need.

Ginza Cosmetics had a similar theme as Naruse Mikio’s When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960). The latter was a deeper exploration of an aging hostess while the former was lighter look at the same subject. Ginza Cosmetics dealt with a woman who could have been more than a hostess listening to men as they drank, but the war and a patriarchal society left her with few options and she did what she had to do to survive and provide for her son. Her future was unknown but Tanaka’s Yukiko left no doubt she was more than prepared to face it with grace and dignity.

17 May 2024

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