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Drama

Ikiru

- A big story of a little man which will grip your soul...

Kanji Watanabe is a middle-aged man who has worked in the same monotonous bureaucratic position for decades. Learning he has cancer, he starts to look for the meaning of his life.

Release Date : 1952-10-09

Language :Japanese

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : TOHO

Production Country : Japan

Alternative Titles : IkiruTo Live

Cast

Takashi Shimura

Character Name : Kanji Watanabe

Original Name : 志村喬

Gender : Male

Haruo Tanaka

Character Name : Sakai

Original Name : 田中春男

Gender : Male

Nobuo Kaneko

Character Name : Mitsuo, son of Kanji

Original Name : 金子信雄

Gender : Male

Bokuzen Hidari

Character Name : Ohara

Original Name : 左卜全

Gender : Male

Miki Odagiri

Character Name : Toyo

Original Name : 小田切みき

Gender : Female

Shinichi Himori

Character Name : Kimura

Original Name : 日守新一

Gender : Male

Minoru Chiaki

Character Name : Noguchi

Original Name : 千秋実

Gender : Male

Minosuke Yamada

Character Name : Subordinate Clerk Saito

Original Name : 山田巳之助

Gender : Male

Kamatari Fujiwara

Character Name : Sub-Section Chief Ono

Original Name : 藤原釜足

Gender : Male

Makoto Kobori

Character Name : Kiichi Watanabe, Kanji's Brother

Original Name : 小堀誠

Gender : Male

Nobuo Nakamura

Character Name : Deputy Mayor

Original Name : 中村伸郎

Gender : Male

Atsushi Watanabe

Character Name : Patient

Original Name : 渡辺篤

Gender : Male

Isao Kimura

Character Name : Intern

Original Name : 木村功

Gender : Male

Masao Shimizu

Character Name : Doctor

Original Name : 清水将夫

Gender : Male

Yūnosuke Itō

Character Name : Novelist

Original Name : 伊藤雄之助

Gender : Male

Yoshie Minami

Character Name : The Maid

Original Name : 南美江

Gender : Female

Kumeko Urabe

Character Name : Tatsu Watanabe

Original Name : 浦辺粂子

Gender : Female

Eiko Miyoshi

Character Name : Housewife

Original Name : 三好栄子

Gender : Female

Noriko Honma

Character Name : Housewife

Original Name : 本間文子

Gender : Female

Yatsuko Tan'ami

Character Name : Bar Hostess

Original Name : 丹阿弥谷津子

Gender : Female

Kin Sugai

Character Name : Housewife

Original Name : 菅井きん

Gender : Female

Kyôko Seki

Character Name : Kazue Watanabe

Original Name : Kyôko Seki

Gender : Female

Kusuo Abe

Character Name : City Assemblyman

Original Name : 阿部九洲男

Gender : Male

Tomo'o Nagai

Character Name : Newspaperman

Original Name : 永井智雄

Gender : Male

Seiji Miyaguchi

Character Name : Yakuza Boss

Original Name : 宮口精二

Gender : Male

Daisuke Katō

Character Name : Yakuza

Original Name : 加東大介

Gender : Male

Hiroshi Hayashi

Character Name : Yakuza

Original Name : 林寛

Gender : Male

Fuyuki Murakami

Character Name : Newspaperman

Original Name : 村上冬樹

Gender : Male

Hirayoshi Aono

Character Name : Newspaperman

Original Name : 青野平義

Gender : Male

Toranosuke Ogawa

Character Name : Park Section Chief

Original Name : 小川虎之助

Gender : Male

Akira Sera

Character Name : Worker in General Affairs

Original Name : 瀬良明

Gender : Male

Ichirō Chiba

Character Name : Policeman

Original Name : 千葉一郎

Gender : Male

Akira Tani

Character Name : Bar Owner

Original Name : 谷晃

Gender : Male

Yōyō Kojima

Character Name : Worker in Sewage Section

Original Name : 小島洋々

Gender : Male

Toshiyuki Ichimura

Character Name : Pianist

Original Name : 市村俊幸

Gender : Male

Harue Kuramoto

Character Name : Dancer

Original Name : Harue Kuramoto

Gender : Female

Rasa Saya

Character Name : Stripper

Original Name : Rasa Saya

Gender : Female

Taizō Fukami

Character Name : Baseball Spectator

Original Name : 深見泰三

Gender : Male

Tateo Kawasaki

Character Name : Civil Engineering Section Staff

Original Name : Tateo Kawasaki

Gender : Male

Keiichirō Katsumoto

Character Name : Park Division Staff

Original Name : 勝本圭一郎

Gender : Male

Haruko Toyama

Character Name : Cabaret Woman

Original Name : Haruko Toyama

Gender : Female

Sachio Sakai

Character Name : Yakuza (uncredited)

Original Name : 堺左千夫

Gender : Male

Shōichi Hirose

Character Name : Yakuza (uncredited)

Original Name : 広瀬正一

Gender : Male

Kôji Uno

Character Name : Yakuza (uncredited)

Original Name : 宇野晃司

Gender : Male

Yaeko Izumo

Character Name : Housewife (uncredited)

Original Name : 出雲八重子

Gender : Female

Jirô Mitsuaki

Character Name : City Hall Executive (uncredited)

Original Name : Jirô Mitsuaki

Gender : Male

Sôkichi Maki

Character Name : General Manager (uncredited)

Original Name : Sôkichi Maki

Gender : Male

Haruo Suzuki

Character Name : Sanitation Division Receptionist (uncredited)

Original Name : 鈴木治夫

Gender : Male

Takeo Nagashima

Character Name : (uncredited)

Original Name : Takeo Nagashima

Gender : Male

Kazuo Imai

Character Name : (uncredited)

Original Name : 今井和雄

Gender : Male

Shigeo Katō

Character Name : (uncredited)

Original Name : 加藤茂雄

Gender : Male

Hiroshi Akitsu

Character Name : Infectious Diseases Section Receptionist Staff (uncredited)

Original Name : 安芸津広

Gender : Male

Ippei Kawagoe

Character Name : Road Section Receptionist (uncredited)

Original Name : Ippei Kawagoe

Gender : Male

Mitsuo Tsuda

Character Name : City Planning Receptionist (uncredited)

Original Name : 津田光男

Gender : Male

Keiji Sakakida

Character Name : Land Readjustment Section Receptionist (uncredited)

Original Name : 榊田敬二

Gender : Male

Takuzō Kumagai

Character Name : Fire Department Staff (uncredited)

Original Name : 熊谷卓三

Gender : Male

Tsuneo Katagiri

Character Name : (uncredited)

Original Name : 片桐恒男

Gender : Male

Junpei Natsuki

Character Name : Patient (uncredited)

Original Name : 夏木順平

Gender : Male

Hiroshi Koizumi

Character Name : Jazz Bar Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : 小泉博

Gender : Male

Jun'ichirō Mukai

Character Name : (uncredited)

Original Name : 向井淳一郎

Gender : Male

Sōjirō Motoki

Character Name : Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Original Name : 本木荘二郎

Gender : Male

Kyoko Aoyama

Character Name : Schoolgirl (uncredited)

Original Name : 青山京子

Gender : Female

Reviews

C

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2022-09-09

Takashi Shimura is "Watanabe", an elderly civil service lifer who is told that he has terminal stomach cancer. After years of a disciplined, rather pedestrian existence he now feels a need to emancipate himself and start to live a little. The story is told through two threads: one looks at the end of the old gent's life from his own perspective; the second takes a retrospective view from the wake as his family and colleagues gather to remember him. Kurusawa is clearly making a point with this delicate, poignant film - perhaps life needs to be appreciated and enjoyed - not necessarily in a jovial, happy fashion, but by achievement. In this case "Watanabe" sets about using his position to help locals get a park, but he also starts an empowering relationship (platonic) with a younger girl, who is quite keen on her food, it has to be said. As his colleagues at the wake suffer from excesses of saké their traditionally stiff, reserved, view of their late friend becomes more of a tool to evaluate their own roles and purpose as they determine to be more like him.... The writing has plenty of humour and again, Kurosawa uses weather as a wonderfully potent instrument to create a great atmospheric feel to this gentle story of profound change, and - maybe - contentment.

P

Peter McGinn

@narrator56

2023-11-16

I watched the English follow-up version (Living) before watching this original, and wished I had reversed my order. I liked Living much more than this original, but since both were written by the same Japanese scriptwriter, my preference might be cultural rather than due to quality issues, not to mention the scriptwriter had come up with improvements through the intervening years. The club and bar scenes near the beginning seem to go on much longer than in the remake, or at least it felt like it! And the same for the later scenes with the young woman. Then again, that wouldn’t be surprising since this older version is 40 minutes longer. Still, the differences in the details based on the separate cultures are interesting to note, and I recommend both versions, though I would start with the older one as I mentioned above.

B

badelf

@badelf

2023-07-18

Typical Kurasawa creative framing in the beginning of the movie. The scene of dancers shot through bead curtains swinging in time to the music was brilliant. His choice of Miki Odagiri for muse is brilliant. Her laugh is infectious. The last act stuck me as rather static. It's perhaps from cultural mores about the dead I don't understand (like the taboo of not ever sticking your chopsticks into the rice bowl!). Kurasawa waxes philosophical on life and government here, and indeed, nothing has changed in 70 years.