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The Ballad of Narayama poster
1h 38m

The Ballad of Narayama (1958)

Overview

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?
74%
Keisuke Kinoshita profile
Keisuke Kinoshita

Director

Cast

Kinuyo Tanaka profile
Kinuyo Tanaka

Orin

Teiji Takahashi profile
Teiji Takahashi

Tatsuhei

Yūko Mochizuki profile
Yūko Mochizuki

Tamayan

Seiji Miyaguchi profile
Seiji Miyaguchi

Matayan

Yūnosuke Itō profile
Yūnosuke Itō

Matayan's son

Ken Mitsuda profile
Ken Mitsuda

Teruyan

Danko Ichikawa profile
Danko Ichikawa

Kesakichi

Keiko Ogasawara profile
Keiko Ogasawara

Matsu-yan

Eijirō Tōno profile
Eijirō Tōno

Messenger

Kō Nishimura profile
Kō Nishimura

One of the villagers who Teaches Narayama's Manners (uncredited)

Katsuyuki Hattori profile
Katsuyuki Hattori

Tatsuhei's son (uncredited)

Tokuji Kobayashi profile
Tokuji Kobayashi

One of the villagers who teaches Narayama's manners (uncredited)

Kinuyo Tanaka profile
Kinuyo Tanaka

Orin

Teiji Takahashi profile
Teiji Takahashi

Tatsuhei

Yūko Mochizuki profile
Yūko Mochizuki

Tamayan

Seiji Miyaguchi profile
Seiji Miyaguchi

Matayan

Yūnosuke Itō profile
Yūnosuke Itō

Matayan's son

Ken Mitsuda profile
Ken Mitsuda

Teruyan

Danko Ichikawa profile
Danko Ichikawa

Kesakichi

Keiko Ogasawara profile
Keiko Ogasawara

Matsu-yan

Eijirō Tōno profile
Eijirō Tōno

Messenger

Kō Nishimura profile
Kō Nishimura

One of the villagers who Teaches Narayama's Manners (uncredited)

Katsuyuki Hattori profile
Katsuyuki Hattori

Tatsuhei's son (uncredited)

Tokuji Kobayashi profile
Tokuji Kobayashi

One of the villagers who teaches Narayama's manners (uncredited)

Extra

Release Date

June 1, 1958

Original Language

Japanese

Budget

$0.00

Production Company

Shochiku logo

Available On

Criterion Channel logoYou can visit JustWatch for more information.

Videos

THE BALLAD OF NARAYAMA (1958) Trailer | Director: Keisuke Kinoshita thumbnail
THE BALLAD OF NARAYAMA (1958) Trailer | Director: Keisuke Kinoshita
The Ballad of Narayama - Trailer thumbnail
The Ballad of Narayama - Trailer

Images

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movie backdrop 1
movie backdrop 2
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movie backdrop 4

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