Five Women Around Him

In the twilight of Japan's Taisho era, Five Women Around Him serves as a sophisticated, albeit fragmented, psychological map of a man caught in the gravitational pull of five distinct female archetypes. The narrative follows a charismatic yet emotionally adrift protagonist, played by the legendary Tokihiko Okada, as he navigates a series of romantic and social entanglements that define the shifting landscape of 1920s Tokyo. Far from a simple harem comedy, the film functions as a serious inquiry into the 'Modern Girl' (Moga) phenomenon and the erosion of traditional patriarchal structures. Each woman—ranging from the dutiful traditionalist to the liberated urbanite—represents a different path for a nation standing on the precipice of radical change. As the protagonist moves between these spheres, the film exposes the hollow core of the dandy lifestyle, ultimately questioning whether a man defined by the women around him possesses a soul of his own.