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In 1856, an American ship carrying Townsend Harris, the
U.S. Consul General to Japan, and his interpreter, Henry Heusken, nears
the Japanese seaport of Shimoda. When Baron Tamura, the governor
of the province, denies the ship permission to land, Harris asserts that
he has come in accordance with the treaty signed between his country and
Japan. Believing that all the disasters visited upon Japan since
the signing of the treaty have been warning signs from the Gods, Tamura
refuses to recognize the pact, but Harris defies him and comes ashore
anyway. Although Tamura rejects Harris' status as American Consul,
he allows him to remain as a private citizen and grants him the use of a
dilapidated old house. When Harris hoists the American flag above
his quarters, Tamura orders it lowered and instructs the villagers to
ostracize the Americans. In protest, Harris presents Tamura a
letter addressed to the Shogun, asking him to confirm his position as
American Consul.
The Imperial Court in Edo is in a state of indecision
over the treaty, and Tamura is instructed to keep Harris happy until a
resolution can be reached. Following orders, Tamura invites Harris
to dinner. During the course of the evening, Tamura notices
Harris' interest in a comely geisha named Okichi, and so sends her to
the American to keep him occupied. At first frightened and puzzled
by Harris' strange American customs, Okichi is soon won over by his
gentleness and compassion. Harris is appalled when he learns that
Okichi was sold into a geisha house as a young girl by her
poverty-stricken family. Harris' friendship earns Okichi the
enmity of the village women, who deem her a concubine and shun her.
One day, another ship sails into the harbor and, when
Harris rows out to greet it, the captain warns him to stay away because
the crew is rife with cholera. When several of the infected
sailors dive overboard and swim ashore, Harris warns the villagers to
stay away from them, but to no avail. Soon, cholera sweeps through
the village and Okichi is stricken. As the villagers perform
rituals to cast out the disease, Harris, aware that only frost or fire
can kill cholera, sets several houses aflame. Furious, Tamura
places Harris under house arrest and orders him to leave on the next
ship. Okichi, now recovered, is disconsolate at the thought of
Harris' impending departure.
Embittered by months of failure, Harris packs his
belongings, but when the epidemic abruptly ends, the people come to
thank him for saving their lives, and Tamura tells Harris that, as a
debt of gratitude, he has arranged for him to visit the Shogun. To
honor Harris, the villagers form a procession to escort him to Edo.
Upon reaching the gates of the city, Harris is ushered into the Great
Hall of the Shogun, which has been closed to foreigners for centuries.
Brandishing the treaty, Harris makes a plea to pull down the barriers
existing between Japan and the United States.
At a banquet the following day, members of the Council
who will vote on the treaty question Harris about the warlike propensity
of the West and the practice of slavery. When a Council member
observes that it is better for the countries to remain apart, Harris
argues for progress. At an archery exhibition the next day, Lord
Shido, one of the supporters of the treaty, is assassinated, and Tamura,
warning that only violence will come of the treaty, begs Harris to leave
immediately. Swayed by Lord Shido's death, the Council passes the
treaty. Tamura's clan, opposed to the agreement, orders Tamura to
kill Harris, and Tamura enlists Okichi in the plot, reminding her of her
unswerving obedience to him. When Harris promises to return to
Okichi and alludes to marriage, she is disconsolate because of her
promise to Tamura.
That night, Okichi, following instructions, ties a red
scarf to Harris' bedroom door, signaling Tamura that Harris is sleeping
inside. Stealthily entering the house, Tamura enters the room and
unsheathes his sword, but when he throws back the bed covers, he finds
Okichi and flees. Encountering Harris in the hallway, Tamura
slashes the scarf in half, tells Harris to take back his life and then
runs out the door. After Okichi informs Harris that Tamura must
kill himself for failing his mission, Harris finds Tamura dead in the
courtyard, a victim of his own sword. Okichi, aware that she must
be punished for breaking her vow to Tamura, forsakes Harris, leaving
behind a mirror, the symbol of her soul. As Harris is reverently
carried through the streets to sign the treaty, Okichi watches from the
crowd, tears in her adoring eyes.
American Film Institute
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