Tora-san's Promise

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Tora-san's Promise
Theatrical poster
Directed byYoji Yamada
Written byYoji Yamada
Yoshitaka Asama
StarringKiyoshi Atsumi
Mikiko Otonashi
CinematographyTetsuo Takaba
Edited byIwao Ishii
Music byNaozumi Yamamoto
Distributed byShochiku
Release date
  • December 28, 1981 (1981-12-28)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

Tora-san's Promise (男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船, Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajirō Kamifūsen), also called Torasan and a Paper Balloon in some regions,[1] is a 1981 Japanese comedy film directed by Yoji Yamada. It stars Kiyoshi Atsumi as Torajirō Kuruma (Tora-san), and Mikiko Otonashi as his love interest or "Madonna".[2] Tora-san's Promise is the twenty-eighth entry in the popular, long-running Otoko wa Tsurai yo series.

Synopsis[edit]

Tora-san returns to his family's home to attend an elementary school class reunion. After he embarrasses himself by getting drunk and insulting all his ex-classmates, he resumes his travels. In Kyushu he meets an outspoken 18-year-old girl who becomes enamored of Tora-san and follows him around. One of Tora-san's old friends is terminally ill and makes Tora-san promise him to marry his wife once he is gone.[3][4][5]

Cast[edit]

Critical appraisal[edit]

Stuart Galbraith IV writes that Tora-san's Promise is a middle-quality entry in the Otoko wa Tsurai yo series, though the series has a high standard.[4] The German-language site molodezhnaja gives Tora-san's Promise three and a half out of five stars.[7]

Availability[edit]

Tora-san's Promise was released theatrically on December 28, 1981.[8] In Japan, the film was released on videotape in 1986 and 1996, and in DVD format in 2002 and 2008.[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "OTOKO WA TSURAIYO -TORAJIRO KAMIFUSEN". Complete Index to World Film. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  2. ^ "男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船 (Madonna)" (in Japanese). www.tora-san.jp. Retrieved 2010-01-21. (official site)
  3. ^ 男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船 (in Japanese). Kinema Junpo. Archived from the original on 2012-03-09. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  4. ^ a b Galbraith IV, Stuart (2007-04-03). "Tora-san 28: Tora-san's Promise (Region 3)". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  5. ^ "OTOKO WA TSURAI YO TORAJIRO KAMIFUSEN (1981)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 2012-10-17. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  6. ^ 男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船 (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  7. ^ "Tora-San's Promise" (in German). www.molodezhnaja.ch. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  8. ^ "男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船". Japanese Cinema Database (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Archived from the original on 2014-03-05. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  9. ^ 男はつらいよ 寅次郎紙風船 (1981) (in Japanese). allcinema.net. Retrieved 2010-01-21.

Bibliography[edit]

English[edit]

German[edit]

Japanese[edit]

External links[edit]