The Ballad of Narayama

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The Ballad of Narayama

1983,

2h 10m,

Drama

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Watchlist

93%

15 Reviews

Tomatometer

88%

1,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

93%

Tomatometer

15 Reviews

88%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Still strong at the age of 69, Orin (Sumiko Sakamoto) prepares herself for an inevitable yet frightening ritual. In her village, where food is scarce, life is harsh and people are desperate and cruel. Anyone who lives for 70 years is hauled to the mountaintop by their children and left to die in the dead of winter. Orin is prepared to accept her fate, but she also has one last, all-important task -- she must find a suitable wife for her son, Tatsuhei (Ken Ogata).

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Jun 20, 2018

4/4

A fascinating experience.

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

Feb 8, 2010

Imamura's rough sexual humor is still in evidence, but now it has taken on a dark tone: to make love is to flirt with death.

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Zach Campbell

Slant Magazine

Sep 2, 2004

4/4

However you slice up postwar Japanese cinema, Shohei Imamura is one of its premiere figures.

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Marcelo Paredes

Cinencuentro

Jul 6, 2026

...the film seems to suggest that not everything can stop simply because there are unfinished matters. Life continues, cycles run their course, and traditions are ultimately fulfilled. [Full review in Spanish]

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Carson Timar

Filmotomy

Feb 12, 2022

Outside of the films impressive visuals, 1983s The Ballad of Narayama ends up ranging from average to outright terrible.

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Nicholas Bell

IONCINEMA.com

Nov 16, 2020

With its exaggeration and extreme stylization, Kinoshita taps into the tragic, melancholy heart of this fable.

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Luke L

Mar 18, 2018

Harsh, brutal, but at the same time, very much filled with life - even if it does raise the question of whether life is even worth living. In-your-face symbolism aside, I do wonder at the end of the day what the point was, even though I did enjoy the film.

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Theodore L

Apr 8, 2017

In a rural Japanese village every person that turn 70 has to climb a nearby mountain to die. We follow a woman and her last days with her family. Cool music, some fresh wind effects. I like the animals put to screen, often added to scenes for a scene fadeout or something. It takes some time for the trye plot to happen. 90 minutes in the journey starts. The rest is filled with intrigues, murders, fights and lovemaking. The importantness of staying alive and at the same time capture wifes to mate with is strong, the combination of them is hard - there is not much food around. When the mountain hike starts it's pretty beautiful and a long climax. Not sure if it was worth the long wait, though. At times it's hard to follow, with many characters and names you never really catch or get a grip of. Silly characters, some still likeable. 7 out of 10 animals.

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Shôhei Imamura

Director

Sumiko Sakamoto

Orin

Ken Ogata

Tatsuhei

Aki Takejô

Tamayan

Seiji Kurasaki

Actor

Tonpei Hidari

Actor

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Synopsis

Still strong at the age of 69, Orin (Sumiko Sakamoto) prepares herself for an inevitable yet frightening ritual. In her village, where food is scarce, life is harsh and people are desperate and cruel. Anyone who lives for 70 years is hauled to the mountaintop by their children and left to die in the dead of winter. Orin is prepared to accept her fate, but she also has one last, all-important task -- she must find a suitable wife for her son, Tatsuhei (Ken Ogata).

Director: Shôhei Imamura
Screenwriter: Shôhei Imamura
Production Co: Toei Company
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 9, 2018
Runtime: 2h 10m

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