The Ballad of Narayama
1958 · 98 min · Drama
With my mother on my back, now is the time to say goodbye to this world.
In a remote village where food is scarce, elders who reach the age of 70 are carried by their children to the top of a nearby mountain to die in solitude. Orin, a vibrant 69-year-old grandmother, has accepted her fate — but struggles to prepare the rest of her family for the ritual.
- Director
- Keisuke Kinoshita
- Writers
- Shichirō Fukazawa, Keisuke Kinoshita
- Released
- June 1, 1958
- Language
- Japanese
Cast
Kinuyo Tanaka
Orin
Teiji Takahashi
Tatsuhei
Yūko Mochizuki
Tamayan
Seiji Miyaguchi
Matayan
Yūnosuke Itō
Matayan's son
Ken Mitsuda
Teruyan
Danko Ichikawa
Kesakichi
Keiko Ogasawara
Matsu-yan
Eijirō Tōno
Messenger
Kō Nishimura
One of the villagers who Teaches Narayama's Manners (uncredited)
Masao Oda
One of the villagers who teaches Narayama's manners
Katsuyuki Hattori
Tatsuhei's son (uncredited)
Where to watch in the US
Stream
Rent or buy
Streaming data from JustWatch, via TMDB.