The Ballad of Narayama

The Ballad of Narayama (1958)


  • Genre: Drama
  • Release Date: 1958-06-01
  • User Rating: 7.4/10 from 78 ratings
  • Runtime: 1h 38min
  • Language: 日本語
  • Production Company: Shochiku
  • Production Country: Japan
  • Director: Keisuke Kinoshita
star 7.4/10
From 78 Ratings

Summary

In Kabuki style, the film tells the story of a remote mountain village where the scarcity of food leads to a voluntary but socially-enforced policy in which relatives carry 70-year-old family members up Narayama mountain to die. Granny Orin is approaching 70, content to embrace her fate. Her widowed son Tatsuhei cannot bear losing his mother, even as she arranges his marriage to a widow his age. Her grandson Kesa, who's girlfriend is pregnant, is selfishly happy to see Orin die. Around them, a family of thieves are dealt with severely, and an old man, past 70, whose son has cast him out, scrounges for food. Will Orin's loving and accepting spirit teach and ennoble her family?

The Ballad of Narayama Trailer

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  • Kinuyo Tanaka

    as Orin
  • Teiji Takahashi

    as Tatsuhei
  • Yūko Mochizuki

    as Tamayan
  • Seiji Miyaguchi

    as Matayan
  • Yūnosuke Itō

    as Matayan's son
  • Ken Mitsuda

    as Teruyan
  • Danko Ichikawa

    as Kesakichi
  • Keiko Ogasawara

    as Matsu-yan
  • Eijirō Tōno

    as Messenger
  • Kō Nishimura

    as One of the villagers who Teaches Narayama's Manners (uncredited)
  • Katsuyuki Hattori

    as Tatsuhei's son (uncredited)
  • Tokuji Kobayashi

    as One of the villagers who teaches Narayama's manners (uncredited)
  • Masao Oda

    as One of the villagers who teaches Narayama's manners (uncredited)
Writing Shichirō Fukazawa Novel
Sound Shûzô Horikawa Sound Mixer
Directing Keisuke Kinoshita Director
Sound Hideo Nishizaki Sound Recordist
Sound Hisao Ōno Sound Recordist
Writing Keisuke Kinoshita Writer
Camera Hiroshi Kusuda Director of Photography
Art Chiyoo Umeda Art Direction
Art Mototsugu Komaki Set Decoration
Costume & Make-Up Toshikazu Sugiyama Costume Design
Art Genzô Furumiya Set Designer
Editing Yoshi Sugihara Editor
Sound Chūji Kinoshita Original Music Composer
Sound Matsunosuke Nozawa Original Music Composer
Production Ryuzo Otani Producer
Production Masaharu Kokaji Producer
Directing Yoshikazu Ōtsuki Assistant Director
Art Kisaku Ito Production Design

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