Madadayo

Madadayo (まあだだよ, Mādadayo, "Not Yet") is a 1993 Japanese comedy-drama film. It is the thirtieth and final film to be completed by Akira Kurosawa. It was screened out of competition at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.[2] The film was selected as the Japanese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 66th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.[3][4]

Madadayo
Theatrical Release Poster
Directed byAkira Kurosawa
Screenplay by
Based onLiterary works
by Hyakken Uchida
Produced byHisao Kurosawa
Starring
Cinematography
Music byShinichiro Ikebe[1]
Production
companies
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • 17 April 1993 (1993-04-17) (Japan)
Running time
134 minutes[1]
CountryJapan

Plot

The main story of the film is based on the life of a Japanese academic and author Hyakken Uchida (1889–1971). The film opens with him resigning as professor of German, in the period immediately before the Second World War. The plot is centered on his relationship with his former students, who care for him in his old age. Many of the movie's vignettes, like the search for a missing cat and the time Uchida spent in a one-room hut after his home was destroyed in a bombing raid, come from Uchida's own writings, but the movie also gives Kurosawa the chance to comment on aspects of modern Japanese history like the American occupation of Japan that he had only been able to explore indirectly in his earlier works.[5]

Cast

Release

Madadayo was distributed theatrically in Japan by Toho on 17 April 1993.[1] The film was exhibited at various American film festivals beginning on March 20, 1998.[1] It did not initially receive a wide theatrical release and was released directly to television by WinStar Cinema and first broadcast on Turner Classic Movies in September 1999.[1] It was reissued theatrically on September 1, 2000.[1]

English-subtitled DVDs have been released by Winstar and the Criterion Collection in the U.S., Madman in Australia, Yume Pictures in the UK, and Mei Ah in Hong Kong. A Blu-ray edition, without English subtitles, is available in Japan as part of a box set with Rashomon, Ran, and The Quiet Duel.[6]

Reception

In Japan, the film won the awards for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Lighting at the Japanese Academy Awards.[1] All these awards were given to their respective crews for their work on both Madadayo and Rainbow Bridge.[1]

Madadayo received generally positive reviews from critics, maintaining an 87% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[7]

See also

References
  1. Galbraith IV 2008, p. 382.
  2. "Festival de Cannes: Madadayo". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-08-25.
  3. Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
  4. Frook, John Evan (30 November 1993). "Acad inks Cates, unveils foreign-language entries". Variety. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
  5. Conrad, David A. (2022). Akira Kurosawa and Modern Japan, 219-225, McFarland & Co.
  6. "YESASIA: Kurosawa Akira Blu-ray Box (Blu-ray) (First Press Limited Edition) (Japan Version) Blu-ray - Nakadai Tatsuya, , Kadokawa Pictures - Japan Movies & Videos - Free Shipping - North America Site". www.yesasia.com. Retrieved 2018-06-29.
  7. "Madadayo (2000)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 26, 2017.

Bibliography
  • Conrad, David A. (2022). Akira Kurosawa and Modern Japan. McFarland & Co. ISBN 978-1-4766-8674-5.
  • Galbraith IV, Stuart (2008). The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-1461673743.
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