Naruse's films have been compared to the "women's pictures" of Douglas Sirk and others. Both these features show his insight in depicting women facing the constraints of societal conventions and social status.

Second feature start time: 8:50 pm. One of Naruse's most celebrated films, Late Chrysanthemums is a portrait of three aging geishas and their struggle to maintain their financial security and social standing. (101 mins.)

In When a Woman Ascends the Stairs, an aging, widowed hostess in a sleazy nightclub district dreams of opening her own bar while working to support her mother and brother. "An elegant essay in black and white cinemascope and tinkling cocktail jazz," noted J. Hoberman in the Village Voice, "this tale...could give heartbreak lessons to Fassbinder and Sirk." With Hideko Takamine, who also stars in Floating Clouds and Flowing. (110 mins.)