Narayama bushiko (Ballad of Narayama) (1983)

100% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
89% of users liked it
(1,748 ratings)

In this second, award-winning interpretation of a novel by Shichiro Fukazawa, director Shohei Imamura has inserted some scenes of violence and ritual sex that are shocking and were absent in the first, 1958 film. The story is set in the 19th century in a remote and severely impoverished mountain… More In this second, award-winning interpretation of a novel by Shichiro Fukazawa, director Shohei Imamura has inserted some scenes of violence and ritual sex that are shocking and were absent in the first, 1958 film. The story is set in the 19th century in a remote and severely impoverished mountain village in northern Japan. In this fictional society, once the elderly have reached the age of 70 they are brought up Mount Nara, where ancient gods reside, and left to die hopefully blessed by the deities -- this sacrifice will free up food for someone else in the village. Orin (Sumiko Sakamoto) is a 69-year-old grandmother living with one of her sons and three grandchildren and she prepares for her departure for an entire year. Among other activities (not always morally acceptable), she gets a new wife for her oldest son, and then shows the wife where the best place is for catching fish and how to take care of the family. At the top of the mountain, hundreds of skeletons and hungry black crows wait for the next arrivals as the resigned grandmother and one grieving son make the final ascent together, the woman strapped to her son's back. Director Imamura has trenchantly probed the nature of inhumanity and survival in a small, everyman's village. Narayama Bushi Ko won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1983. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 2 hr. 10 min.
Directed By: Shohei Imamura
Written By: Shichiro Fukazawa, Shohei Imamura
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Sep 7, 1984 Limited
On DVD: Jun 10, 2008

Critic Reviews

Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
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.
Anton Bitel, Little White Lies
in this hermetic world... Imamura captures a truly universal, all-encompassing experience, showing the transmission of virtues and vices from one generation to the next in the service of life's tenacious continuity.
Gabe Leibowitz, Film and Felt
A good movie that could have been truly great
Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy
A masterpiece of the human condition...[but] below the very peak of Imamura's filmmaking powers.
Don Willmott, Filmcritic.com
a remarkable comedy/drama that lives up to that overused adjective: haunting
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Grippingly told tale.
Zach Campbell, Slant Magazine
However you slice up postwar Japanese cinema, Shohei Imamura is one of its premiere figures.
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
Presents a wild, realistic and raw portrait of life in a small Japanese mountain village one hundred years ago
Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com
The Ballad of Naramaya is an indelible and transfixing poem of a movie that packs a substantial and complicated emotional punch.

Read all 9 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Lucas M

Shohei Imamura present a great tale, the struggle of a mother to accomplish all the necessity of your family, before her death. With the perfect direction, and screenplay, The Ballad of Narayma, show too the sexual perform of her sons and the violent way of life that the community… More
Shohei Imamura present a great tale, the struggle of a mother to accomplish all the necessity of your family, before her death. With the perfect direction, and screenplay, The Ballad of Narayma, show too the sexual perform of her sons and the violent way of life that the community live together. Narayma, bring too a strange dark humor, shocking scenes and the difficulty of a son to comply an cold tradition. Certainly, deserve win the Palme d'or in 1983. Fresh.
Saskia D

This movie was a treat!! It has everything: humor, drama, great characters and a beautiful story. It's situated in a peasant village, where everybody has to struggle to keep the mouths of their families fed. The people are submitted to strict rules to make sure that everything… More
This movie was a treat!! It has everything: humor, drama, great characters and a beautiful story. It's situated in a peasant village, where everybody has to struggle to keep the mouths of their families fed. The people are submitted to strict rules to make sure that everything doesn't spin out of control. One of the rules is that when a person turns 70, they have to be carried off to the mountain of Narayama by the eldest son where they are left to die. The story revolves around Orin, the 69 year old mother and her family, a colorful collection of characters that find their way into your heart effortlessly. <div style="width:231px;"><a href="http://www.flixster.com/movie/narayama-bushiko-ballad-of-narayama/photos?p=11356983"><img src="http://content9.flixster.com/photo/11/35/69/11356983_gal.jpg" border="0"/></a><div style="text-align:center;font-size:10px;"><a href="http://www.flixster.com">
Stella D

the film recreates a remote mountain village in 19th century japan where famine is always lurking. it's a harsh world where infants are commonly discarded and at age 70, elders are carried to the mountaintop to die. the film follows one family in their various relationships and… More
the film recreates a remote mountain village in 19th century japan where famine is always lurking. it's a harsh world where infants are commonly discarded and at age 70, elders are carried to the mountaintop to die. the film follows one family in their various relationships and day to day struggles for survival. it's a raw and beautiful evocation of life bound by tradition at the most basic level
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]"The Ballad of Narayama" is an earthy and heavily symbolic movie with a hint of the supernatural about a peasant village, barely subsisting on whatever crops and animals they raise. One single misfortune for a family can affect the entire village. So… More
[font=Century Gothic]"The Ballad of Narayama" is an earthy and heavily symbolic movie with a hint of the supernatural about a peasant village, barely subsisting on whatever crops and animals they raise. One single misfortune for a family can affect the entire village. So tight are things, there is an unwritten law that when a citizen reaches the age of 70 and supposedly cannot contribute anymore, they are carried on the back of their son to the mountain and left behind as a tribute to the mountain god.(How does this differ from how the elderly are treated today?) [/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]The focus in "The Ballad of Narayama" is on one representative family that demonstrates as equal as everything is for the people in the village, there is something of a pecking order. Tatsuhei's(Ken Ogata) wife just died(Though some do make it to a ripe old age, many others die young.) and Tama(Aki Takejo) has just arrived from a neighboring village to be his new wife just in time for the local festival. His brother Risuke(Tonpei Hidari) is a second son, a yakko forbidden from marrying. Even in this group, he is at the low end due to his offensive odor. Their mother Orin(Sumiko Sakamato) is 69 years old and in good health with all her teeth intact until she knocks out two on purpose. She is looking forward to her trip to the mountain to be reunited with her late husband and ending her life of hardship.[/font]