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Bookmark this pageIkiru (1952)
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Movie review
From Time Out London
Showing, in a new print, at the centre of a season of must-see Japanese gems, Kurosawa’s depiction of the revelatory last days of an ageing Tokyo salaryman is one of the triumphs of humanist cinema. The superb Takashi Shimura is the lonely civil servant diagnosed with cancer: what begins with a study in gigantic pathos – in the style of Emil Jannings’s work for FW Murnau – richens and blossoms as a series of encounters open his eyes and heart. Kurosawa’s eclectic style is a delight: his striking, varied compositions reflecting the old man’s journey from darkness to some kind of light right until the moving finale.Author: Wally Hammond
Time Out London Issue 1977, July 10 -16, 2008
User reviews of this film
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- SR said...
- Posted on Jul 24 2008 18:13 Four stars, are you joking? Although it is not Kurosawa's masterpiece, it is a poignant and moving piece of cinema - An absolute 'must see' film. Five stars please.
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Producer: Shojiro Motoki
Cast: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Kyoko Seki, Miki Odagiri, Makoto Kobori, Kumeko Urabe, Kamatari Fujiwara full cast
Rated: 15
Duration: 143 mins
UK Release: Jul 18 2008
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