Ikiru

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Julian Rex M Thematically simplistic but emotionally layered, Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru is a powerfully resonant exploration of mortality, death, and the fulfillment of life that expertly balances its technical genius with Takashi Shimura's bottomlessly affecting performance. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/23/25 Full Review Virgo V Ikiru (To Live) is a 1952 Japanese tragedy film directed by Akira Kurosawa from a screenplay co-written with Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni. The screenplay was partly inspired by Leo Tolstoy's 1886 novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich. It stars Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko and Miki Odagiri. The music was done by Fumio Hayasaka. It was produced by Sōjirō Motoki and distributed by Toho Company, Limited. In 2009, the film was voted at No. 13 on the list of "The Greatest Japanese Films of All Time" by Japanese film magazine Kinema Junpo. The film was included in BBC's 2018 list of The 100 greatest foreign language films. Conversely, in 2016 The Daily Telegraph named it one of the 10 most overrated films. It was awarded the Special Prize of the Senate of Berlin at the Berlin International Film Festival. It was awarded Best Film at the 1953 Kinema Junpo Awards. It was awarded Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Sound Recording at the 1953 Mainichi Film Awards. Ikiru was remade as a Japanese television film that debuted on TV Asahi on 9 September 2007, the day after a remake of Kurosawa's High and Low. Anand, a 1971 Indian-Hindi film, was inspired by Ikiru. A British remake titled Living, adapted by Kazuo Ishiguro, directed by Oliver Hermanus, and starring Bill Nighy, was released in 2022. Vision wrote: “the film was absolutely brilliant. From the direction, performance by Takashi, the production and screenplay, there are elements in the film that have inspired us all. The film examines the struggles of a terminally ill Tokyo bureaucrat (played by Takashi Shimura) and his final quest for meaning or even living. The film explores the decaying family life in Japan. Takashi Shimura showcases his qualities. Akira Kurosawa does it again! I disliked the backtalk that went on between his peers during his ceremonial demise. It dragged on for too long. Overall, three and a half fries!” Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/23/25 Full Review Stephen C Success in 2 hours and 23 minutes!!!!!!!!!!! In Japanese and English versions with English subtitles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/07/25 Full Review James A I don't profess to be anything other than the usual movie viewer. But I can say that, even though it's cultural very different from US movies, it is near perfect in almost every way. It's character driven and Kurosawa builds characters here that are almost too real. It feels vey different from American movies but it's so easy to get lost in the thoughts and feelings of the people portrayed. Takashi Shimura is nothing short of inspired in the lead role. I don't have anything to add that hasn't already been said, but take the 2hours 23min and I don't think you will be sorry. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/14/25 Full Review Leprechaun K A good movie by the master filmmaker. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/28/25 Full Review Hector I One of the master's finest films! The story of a paper-pusher who, on learning he's going to die, wakes up and tries to live, but above all tries to do something good for the community. His son won't talk to him, wants his money and his colleagues despise him. But he has found the strength to act through the rabbit girl. The funeral scene is superb: at first, his colleagues agree with the deputy that the park isn't Watanabe's, but one man stands up to say that it isn't. It was he who made the park, despite all the difficulties. Then, everyone recalls a detail of the project, and all the locals come to pray, his stubbornness in overcoming the administrative barriers, all the barriers despite the mafia. The scene where the construction starts and we see his face lit up, by God? A beautiful scene. Then his colleagues begin to realize the kind of man he was at the end, and in their drunken stupor decide to change. Months later, something unfair happens and his colleagues haven't changed a thing, except for the man who defended Watanabe first, who looks on. The closing scene with the swing is superb, with Watanabe singing under the snow of his accomplished work, no longer afraid of death and no longer having time for enemies. There's subtlety here, and you'd expect people to exclaim that he's a holy man, but there's none of that, no easy feelings here. A powerful indictment of the administrative society of the 1950s. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/11/25 Full Review Read all reviews

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