Mâdadayo (1993)

Following World War II, a retired professor approaching his autumn years finds his quality of life drastically reduced in war-torn Tokyo. Denying despair, he pursues writing and celebrates his birthday with his adoring students.

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Akira Kurosawa, Hyakken Uchida (essays)

Stars:

Tatsuo Matsumura, Hisashi Igawa, George Tokoro

6 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tatsuo Matsumura	...	Professor Hyakken Uchida
Hisashi Igawa	...	Takayama
George Tokoro	...	Amaki (as Jôji Tokoro)
Masayuki Yui	...	Kiriyama
Akira Terao	...	Sawamura
Takeshi Kusaka	...	Dr. Kobayashi
Asei Kobayashi	...	Rev. Kameyama
Kyôko Kagawa	...	Professor's Wife
Mitsuru Hirata	...	Tada
Takao Zushi	...	Kitamura
Nobuto Okamoto	...	Ôta
Tetsu Watanabe
Kimihiro Reizei	...	Murayama
Norio Matsui
Akihiko Sugizaki

Storyline

This film tells the story of professor Uehida Hyakken-sama (1889-1971), in Gotemba, around the forties. He was a university professor until an air raid, when he left to become a writer and has to live in a hut. His mood has hardly changed, not by the change nor by time. Every year his students celebrate his birthday, issuing the question "Mahda kai?" (not yet?), just to hear Uehida-san's answer "Madada yo!" (No, not yet!), in a ritual of self affirmation, and desires of lasting forever. It's a very "japanese" film who portrays everyday life and customs in Japan.

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Plot Keywords:

professor | birthday | beer | japan | air raid | 

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Taglines:

The final film by Japan's master filmmaker.

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

20 March 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Not Yet

Filming Locations:

Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$11,900,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DENTSU Music And Entertainment, Daiei Motion Picture Company, Kurosawa Production Co.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tatsuo Matsumura was 79 years old when he played the Professor, portraying the professor between the ages of 58 and 77. Matsumura was older than his character throughout the movie, almost twenty years older than the Professor he portrayed for most of the picture.

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Goofs

The story depicts Professor Hyakken's 60th birthday toward the end of World War II (1943-1945). But he was born in 1889; thus, he turned 60 years old in 1949.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Akira Kurosawa Movies (2014)

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Soundtracks

L'ESTRO ARMONICO Op. II, Concert No 1 in D Major, RV 230
Music by Antonio Vivaldi
Performed by Solisti Veneti (as I Solisti Veneti)
Conducted by Claudio Scimone
Courtesy of ERARO DISQUES S.A.

User Reviews

The fruits of quiet observation

I have to disagree with the individual who suggests that viewers who liked Ran or Seven Samurai will like this. I think the individual who compared this to some of Ingmar Bergman's work is much nearer the mark.

If you're not ready to observe rather mundane happenings in the interest of understanding universal life experiences, you probably won't appreciate this film. It takes some serenity and patience on the part of the viewer, which however are rewarded.

The English subtitles are competent, but cannot explain everything. The word for "fool" in Japanese is written using the characters for horse and for deer; hence the stew of horse meat and venison becomes a "fool's stew." And more importantly, the title Madadayo, though correctly translated as Not Yet, is very often associated with a game of hide-and-seek, with the children who are hiding crying "madadayo!" until they've found a good spot to hide. This will serve to explain the final scene, and make it more poignant perhaps...for the Japanese too speak of returning to one's childhood in extreme old age.