Setting: Tokyo, Aomori, Kyoto, Kyushu and other areas from the 1910s to 1956

Synopsis:
KATSURA KAZUO is a rogue novelist who has a family consisting of his second wife, YORIKO, and five children including the eldest son from his previous marriage. His second son, JIRO, is paralyzed on one side after being stricken with encephalitis.
In the summer of 1956, KAZUO defies convention and begins living with KEIKO, an actress of new theater (SHINGEKI) although knowing how hard YORIKO's life has been bringing up his five children.
After wandering from place to place, KEIKO becomes pregnant, and has an abortion. The two are haunted by misfortune and becomes outcasts of society. Whenever KAZUO awakens from the ecstacies of love-making wiht young KEIKO, his son JIRO's face and twisted body returns to his conscience. His senses are haunted by voices of his children.
One night, KAZUO has a quarrel with KEIKO, and leaves Tokyo for a journey with no particular destination. After wandering aimlessly, he finds himself on board a ferry boat bound for the GOTO Islands in KYUSHU and meets YOKO. This woman cared for him when he was injured after drinking heavily in Kyoto. YOKO is going back to her home on NOZAKI Island to resolve a problem. She is being wooed by an unseen Chinese man from Singapore. The two find their minds at peace for a brief space of time, as they share company and their thoughts.
KAZUO returns home to Tokyo after a long absence, to celebrate a new year's beginning, and he learns of JIRO's death.
On the day of JIRO's funeral, his belongings are delivered from ASAKUSA in Tokyo. The sender is KEIKO whose message is that there is one more thing left behind. KAZUO goes to see KEIKO in ASAKUSA and finds that all KAZUO's things were removed from her house. He opens a package left behind by KEIKO containing only a pair of old shoes.

Notes:
This film is based on a novel by DAN KAZUO (1912-1976). He finished this work just before he died. This was his life work on which he had spent twenty years completing. DAN KAZUO was a novelist who was part of the revival of the "Japanese Romanticism" movement which was a segment in the history of Japanese contemporary literature.
In this film the hero is a novelist who abandons his family and conventional behavior. The story reflects the life of DAN KAZUO himself. In addition to his novel "House on Fire," DAN's other novels are referred to in this film. Novelist DAZAI OSAMU (1909-1948) and Poet NAKAHARA CHUYA (1907-1948) who worked at the same time appear in the film.
FUKASAKU KINJI, the director of the film, made a number of films on yakuza since 1960s, including a masterpiece series, "Battles without Codes" (JINGI NAKI TATAKAI) in 1973-1975. Recently he made several entertaining films based on broader themes such as "The Fall Guy" (KAMATA KOSHINKYOKU) 1982. In "House on Fire," FUKASAKU tries to picturize the dynamism of people by praising life, and not being trapped by dark melancholy which could engulf this type of film.
This film was planned by TAKAIWA TAN who is DAN's stepbrother. DAN's daughter plays the role of the hero's mother. The hero, KATSURA KAZUO, is played by OGATA KEN who played the leading role in "Vengeance is Mine" (FUKUSHU SURU WA WARENI ARI) 1979 and "The Ballad of Narayama" (NARAYAMA BUSHIKO) 1983, both directed by IMAMURA SHOHEI. He portrayed outstanding acting skills by conveying both the gentleness and weakness of a man.