“Haha no Kyoku”/” 母の曲” (“Mother’s Melody”) is a melodramatic film from 1937 directed by Satsuo Yamamoto. A Japanese re-imagining of American film “Stella Dallas”, “Mother’s Melody” is a story about status, family, and motherhood. It centers around the Hatano family whose patriarch’s position and subsequent promotion has lifted them up in status and put his previously low-class wife, Oine into an entirely new social setting that she was all-together unprepared to adapt to. Their daughter Keiko – a girl gifted who quite easily fits within the world of the upper class.
Problems begin to appear when Junkichi – head of the Hatano household – reunites with a former lover turned world-class pianist Kaoru Fujinami while with Keiko on a trip to the mountains. Drama mounts further when Oine happens to encounter an old acquaintance named Ryusaku one day while walking. However, whether or not Ryusaku has a good reputation aside, Oine’s interactions with him inadvertently lead to Keiko’s reputation souring – a result of the gossip that came from Oine’s actions. This culminates in Keiko’s friends abandoning her on her birthday, and further berating her at school, though not elaborating on why. That same day, Keiko meets Ryusaku for the first and only time at her home. Appearing to identify exactly what her former friends meant, she tells him very curtly to leave and never to return.
This scene is followed by another trip to the mountains with Oine accompanying Keiko instead of Junkichi. Oine has the opportunity to talk with Kaoru, and they discuss Keiko. Meanwhile, Keiko is spending time with other youths who have come to this mountain retreat. They ask Keiko to invite her mother to their dinner, but Oine – overwhelmed with it all – frantically declines her daughter’s invitation by saying she is not fit for such things, much to the amusement of the other women present. Except for Kaoru, who excuses herself from the group to console Oine.
Shortly after returning, Oine is given news that she will be separated from Junkichi. She comes to the conclusion that it is better for everyone if she was not around. Following this, she entreats Kaoru to take care of Keiko in her stead since she is a woman of status who Keiko might be better off with. After tricking Keiko into believing she is with Ryusaku, Kaoru and Junkichi take care of Keiko full time. The film ends with Oine observing Keiko’s growth into a woman from the shadows, watching her wedding from a distance.
Themes:
Class:
A theme prevalent throughout “Haha no Kyoku” is social class. That is, the different interactions between classes, and the implications a character’s given social class has for the things that happen to them within the film.
For example, Oine is born into a lower class than her husband Junkichi. Despite her marriage, she is never seen as having risen in status. She is mocked throughout the movie by women who should by all measures be her peers for being unable to act in a way consistent with women of her rank no matter how much effort she puts forth. This isolation from high-society women is likely what leads her to value her friendship with Ryusaku. Though not a primary character, Ryusaku too suffers to an extent from his class. While we the viewers are left unaware of if he has a bad reputation or not, from his introduction he is an object of disdain by at least one woman. Subsequently, Oine’s reconnecting with Ryusaku is what further worsens her opinion among the other women – creating a negative feedback loop that sees her rely on Ryusaku for any form of companionship and in turn pushing her further away from other women of her status. By the end of the film, the only friends that Oine has are Kaoru and Keiko. The former being the object of her ex-husband’s affection, and the latter being her own daughter.
Keiko is the only other character who receives as much attention as Oine does. Keiko transiently exists within the spheres of both the rich and the poor as a result of her birth. However, her class is only of import when viewed in relation to Oine. Keiko’s character arguably suffers more as a result of her mother’s inability to adapt to her new status. All of Keiko’s hurt comes directly from her mother, which as stated stems from Oine’s lowborn status. However, unlike Oine, Keiko eventually rises out of the low class influence she inherits from her mother when she comes under Kaoru’s care. In being adopted by Kaoru she effectively sheds any connection she might have had to her trueborn mother’s place in society. From here, she excels and becomes a true member of high society with her marriage.
Parent-Child Conflict:
Parent-child conflict/struggle are a frequent feature within melodramatic fiction, and "Haha no Kyoku" also has this trope to an extent, although it is not particularly salient when compared to other contemporary melodramatic works.
Keiko and Oine are throughout the movie seen as being close. Keiko very clearly thinks highly of her mother as evidenced by her use of the -sama honorific when addressing her. Up until Oine begins fraternizing with Ryusaku, the two are shown to be an idyllic mother-daughter pair. It could be argued that the movie's primary plot is motivated by their conflict of interest, which is dramatic in and of itself. Oine's desires at the beginning of the film stem from her inability to integrate herself within high-society (while later it becomes her desire to see Keiko succeed), Keiko's wants are similar in that she wants to be accepted among her peers. While Keiko is already accepted among her classmates, her mother's longing for companionship creates strife between both Keiko and her friends, and Keiko and Oine.
This conflict reaches its head when Keiko comes home from school after being berated by her former friends for some unspoken thing her mother has done. Upon arriving and seeing Ryusaku, she concludes quickly what has occurred. Oine's pleas to Keiko to speak with Ryusaku are peppered with such things like, "He isn't a bad guy!" and, "He's brought gifts!". Ultimately, she concedes to her daughter's wishes to not meet Ryusaku, and moves the plot into its second movement wherein Keiko deigns to give Keiko up so she might have a better life.
Other Notes:
"Haha no Kyoku" is based on an American silent film called "Stella Dallas". The parallel and inspiration are very apparent on viewing both. Both are about mothers from poor backgrounds marrying into the upper class and being unable to adjust "properly" to their new environment, both have family patriarchs rekindle their feelings for a past lover, and both have mothers give up their child for the child's sake. These are but a few examples that are easily identifiable, though there exist more -- even whole scenes are replicated.
There are differences, however, and these differences reflect cultural differences between the two countries where the movies were made. These differences are most clearly seen in the two protagonists Stella and Oine respectively. Stella is loud, boisterous, and free-spirited as is typical of younger women in her time. It is precisely because of her personality that she finds herself caught up with the kinds of people that sour her relationship with her husband. Conversely, Oine is substantially more modest and meek. Her circumstances are arguably not even her own fault but more the fault of the women she finds herself compared to.
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