The Quiet Duel

• Toshirō Mifune: Dr. Kyoji Fujisaki
• Takashi Shimura: Dr. Konosuke Fujisaki
• Miki Sanjō: Misao Matsumoto
• Noriko Sengoku: Rui Minegishi
• Kenjiro Uemura: Susumu Nakada
• Chieko Nakakita: Takiko Nakada
• Junnosuke Miyazaki: medical officer Horiguchi
• Isamu Yamaguchi: Nosaka, Patroulleur

The silent duel (Japanese静かなる決闘, Shizukanaru ketto ) is a 1949 produced by Daiei black and white film drama based on the play by Kazuo Kikuta. Directed by Akira Kurosawa.

Action

During the Second World War, the young and idealistic doctor Kyoji Fujisaki infected by a soldier through a set in a military hospital inflicted during an operation cut on his finger with syphilis. On his return home, he works in the hospital his father Konosuke Fujisaki and tries best to treat his disease. Although he can be morally nothing to be guilty, he can with his conscience no longer arrange his engagement to Misao Matsumoto broke off his engagement without explanation. Misao is devastated, but decides against her feelings to marry another man. Meanwhile, Kyoji meets Susumu Nakada, the soldiers from the hospital, where he had been infected. He has to realize that this has infected against all morality, and his wife with syphilis, which is now expecting a child. For Susumu and his unborn child any rescue comes too late, but his wife may in time begin with a treatment. Although the film has a tragic mood, it ends life-affirming.

Criticism

Vincent Canby described the film as a footnote of a great career and identifies as a problem that the basic theme of the film, the syphilis disease, no longer have the horrors of the time of origin of the film.

Background

The silent duel is the only film Kurosawa, which was created by a contemporary theater piece.