Tampopo (1985)

Director:

Jûzô Itami

Writer:

Jûzô Itami

Release Date:

September 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

The first Japanese noodle western!

Plot:

A truck driver stops at a small family run noodle shop and decides to help their fledgling business. The story is intertwined with various vignette scenes on the theme of "the love of food."

Plot Keywords:

Noodle | Kitchen | Vendor | Metafiction | Ritual

Awards:

6 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Tsutomu Yamazaki	...	Goro
Nobuko Miyamoto	...	Tampopo
Ken Watanabe	...	Gun
Kôji Yakusho	...	Man in White Suit
Rikiya Yasuoka	...	Pisuken
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mario Abe	...	Resutoran no shachô
Sen Hara	...	Old woman, pressing Camembert cheese
Isao Hashizume	...	Waiter
Hisashi Igawa	...	Running man
Toshimune Kato	...	Young Employee
Kensô Katô	...	Hira
Yoshi Katô	...	Noodle-making master
Yoshihiro Katô
Fukumi Kuroda	...	Man in White Suit's Mistress
Nobuo Nakamura	...	Old gentleman
Mariko Okada	...	Supageti sensei
Yoshihei Saga	...	Sararîman
Kinzoh Sakura	...	Shohei
Setsuko Shinoi	...	Old Man's Mistress
Hitoshi Takagi	...	Restaurant Owner
Chôei Takahashi	...	Sararîman
Ei Takami	...	Homeless
Akio Tanaka	...	Sararîman
Masahiko Tsugawa	...	Sûpâ no shachô
Hideji Ôtaki	...	Rich Old Man
Ryûtarô Ôtomo	...	Râmen no sensei
Yoriko Dôguchi	...	Pearl Diver (uncredited)
Narutoshi Hayashi	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Jûzô Itami

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jûzô Itami

Produced by
Seigo Hosogoe	....	producer
Jûzô Itami	....	producer
Yasushi Tamaoki	....	producer

Original Music by
Kunihiko Murai

Cinematography by
Masaki Tamura

Film Editing by
Akira Suzuki

Costume Design by
Emiko Kogo

Sound Department
Fumio Hashimoto	....	sound recordist
Masatoshi Saito	....	sound effects editor

Other crew
Izumi Ishimori	....	food designer

Production Companies

• Itami Productions
• New Century Productions

Distributors

• New Yorker Films (1987) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Republic Pictures Home Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Fox Lorber Home Video (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• Nihon Eiga Satellite Broadcasting (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• Lighthouse Home Entertainment (2012) (Germany) (DVD)
• Look Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Republic Pictures Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Toho Video (2011) (Japan) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2010) (Australia) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Dandelion" - International (English title) (informal literal title)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Canada:14A | Singapore:R(A) | UK:18

Company:

Itami Productions

Trivia:

The omelet cook tramp sequence is a visual tribute to Charles Chaplin.

Quotes:

Man in White Suit:I'll kill you if you make that noise once the movie starts! Understand? And... I also don't like watch alarms going off.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Frasier: The Return of Martin Crane (#9.4)" (2001)

Something for Everyone

This movie is not, I repeat, is not intended for the typical movie goer. It is not to be forgotten a day after having been seen. It should be watched repeatedly, gone over with a solid spoon for thorough digesting. Not everyone who sees it will love it at first. But anyone who gives it a willing and open mind will find a deep respect within drawing them further into the movie. Should the simple viewer happen upon this movie, it is necessary to understand that it is not an American movie and only slightly emulates one, therefore it must be expected that certain aspects of the film will escape one at first. There will be certain chapters of the film which appeal more than others, but it is crucial to make an effort to be considerate of the fact that Juzo Itami was not necessarily making Tampopo up to be an international success. What is truly mindblowing is that this movie is nearly twenty years old! I am completely in awe each time I see this movie, and it never fails to make me stop and watch as Goro is instructing Tampopo on why the customer must, MUST, be observed upon entering the shop while Gun complains that the pork slices are too thin. Slap, slap, don't you want to see how the customer reacts? Isn't it strange? How do we relate in this tale? Pick it up, become an addict, never see another movie the same way ever again.