Product Description

The film follows the last 2 decades in the life of Hyakken Uchinda, a writer and teacher who retires in the war years of the early 1940's. His students venerate him in his old age, and join him and his family each year for a ritual birthday party, asking "are you ready?" to which he answers, "not yet," acknowledging that death may be near, but life still goes on.

Kurosawa is considered to be one of the greatest filmmakers of all time and this, his final and touching film, is the perfect ending to a lifetime of cinematic achievements.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #41757 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-03-13
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Letterboxed, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: Japanese
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 134 minutes

Amazon.com
Akira Kurosawa was 83 years old when he made this, his serenely glorious final film. Kurosawa's eyesight was failing, so Madadayo would be the master's farewell to filmmaking, and one can hardly imagine a more lovely and loving way to end one of the greatest careers in motion picture history. Based on the literary works of Japanese author Hyakken Uchida, the film presents Uchida as its central character (named only "The Professor"), and begins in war-torn Tokyo with the sensei's retirement from teaching in 1943. He is considered "solid gold" by his legacy of former students, who support their beloved teacher as he focuses on writing and throw annual birthday parties in his honor. Each year they ask "Maadha kai?" ("Are you ready?"), to which the aging professor responds, "Madadayo!" ("Not yet!"), acknowledging that he will die someday, but only when he's ready.

While Madadayo may not be autobiographical, the professor (played with charming grace by Tatsuo Matsumura) is clearly Kurosawa--a beloved master reflecting on life, continuing to teach, and expressing gratitude for a long and rewarding career that was "not yet" over. This is a calm and simple film of peaceful resolution, in which the only major crisis is the loss of a cat--an episode both heartbreaking and, finally, as life affirming as the professor's benevolent wisdom. And while Kurosawa was criticized for being sentimental when Madadayo was released in Japan in 1993 (it didn't reach Western shores until 2000), there's an important distinction to be made between sentiment and the twilight serenity of one of the cinema's most eloquent humanitarians. Closing with a final dream image that's as beautiful as only dreams can be, Madadayo is, in its own way, as miraculous as any of Kurosawa's previous masterworks. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Interesting Cultural Portrait
I think this film would be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in Japanese culture. This film depicts the lifelong relationship between teacher and student over a course of many years. I think this is the kind of movie only an old man could make, but its implications for the younger generation are strong. It strikes me as the kind of film to watch when you are young and then watch again when you are old to see how your perception of it changes.

On a purely practical note, this is a movie to be enjoyed when you are in a reflective mood and not looking for strong action or really even plotting. This is a film about character and ideas and those looking for samurai battles will be very disappointed.

Also, an important thing to know before watching the movie is that the whole "madadayo" ritual they perform is part of a japanese game of hide and seek. This is explained at the end of the film, but of course the original japanese audience would have known this cultural detail and so i think it would be less confusing for the Western viewer to know this in advance.

Deeper than it seems
As a fan of Kurosawa, I knew that I had to see his last film. The mixed reviews concerned me a bit. After viewing it, however, I am convinced it is one of his greatest works.

On the surface, this is a story about a beloved and somewhat child-like (in a positive way) professor in the autumn of his life. It is a touching and at times seemly overly sentimental story. There are some laugh out loud moments--the scenes with the horse, the professor's attempts to foil robbers and a student doggedly reciting all of the train stops along an extremely long route come to mind. The professor is quick-witted and warm, the acting exceptional.

Many reviewers have already given more details on the plot, so I invite you to watch and look deeper. Although I am not one given to finding allegory everywhere, there are many subtleties here that I assume are completely intentional. A director as great as Kurosawa does not randomly throw in images. So consider...The country of Japan has been torn by war, and so has the professor. We see the results of air raids--the Professor's own home and much of his town has been destroyed. The American occupation is causing changes in the Japanese way of life. Although there is no open criticism, the brief scenes involving Americans and their influences (watch for them!) show you that the Japanese characters find them incomprehensible and aren't sure what to make of them. Additionally, as the film progresses, there is a subtle influx of Western influences-more English words, American customs etc. The Professor is caught between the old Japan and the new. The scene between the kindly neighbor and the callous new landowner illustrate this.

Nowhere is this conflict apparent than in the scene with the missing cat. At first, I thought that it was a little ridiculous to devote so much of the film the the search for a missing cat, and I thought it was over the top in sentimentality. But then, we are shown a few scenes of the professor imagining his lost cat trapped in a bombed-out ruin. Although the war has been over for a few years, the ruins are still smoldering-as if the bombs were recently dropped. The cat is trying to get home, but is confused and frightened. I realized the lost cat must be an symbol for Japanese people caught in the turmoil of a war-torn country in transition. What ultimately saves the Professor is the love and devotion of his students as well as his innate zest for life. When the Professor recovers from his depression, the once destroyed buildings in the background have been rebuilt. Can't be an accident!

There are so many other subtleties here. Watch for the changing role of women, the use of English and German words, the clothing styles, the role of children, music etc. I believe you'll agree this is a great film.

The Master's Fairwell
Shortly into this movie, I realized that the sensei may have been a real person in history, but Kurosawa selected his life to represent his own. Metaphorically, Kurosawa was the great sensei of the global film industry. This film released just a few years before his death carried a message to all his beloved fans and students, "Madadayo (Not yet)." Kurosawa died when I was in Tokyo working at the Pacific Stars and Stripes. The week of his death, I had asked my editor to try to arrange an interview with the great film master. Sadly, before I could met him, he passed on. So, it was that when I realized the message of this, his final film, was the he was not ready to pass on, I cried. Subtle, sublime, personal, this film is not designed for average viewers. For devoted Kurosawa fans, it will be a touching farewell. For those with a less intimate relationship with the film master, it may seem slow and unmoving. I, however, was very moved. Kurosawa's passing is truly a loss to the world of media imagery.