Follows five sex workers employed at a Japanese brothel while the nation debates the passage of an anti-prostitution law.

As the legality of prostitution in Japan draws to a close, five prostitutes struggle with the personal problems that led them to their jobs. Yumeko (Aiko Mimasu) is a widow who pays her son’s expenses. Yasumi (Ayako Wakao) is trying to dig herself out of debt, while fielding a marriage offer. Hanae (Michiko Kogure) supports her child and unemployed husband. Despite appearing carefree, Mickey (Machiko Kyō) carries burdens from her past. Each woman offers a window into a complex situation.

For his final film, Mizoguchi brought a lifetime of experience to bear on the heartbreaking tale of a brothel full of women whose dreams are constantly being shattered by the socioeconomic realities surrounding them. Set in Tokyo’s Red Light District (the literal translation of the Japanese title), Street of Shame was so cutting, and its popularity so great, that when an antiprostitution law was passed in Japan just a few months after the film’s release, some said it was a catalyst.