Ikiru

Audience Reviews

View More

Joaquin U @Joaquin1 Apr 12, 2026 This is great storytelling. I guess the older you are, the more it hits. It’s not some pretentious philosophical movie. It’s long but entertaining. Sure, it drags a bit too much at the end, so even though it’s powerful, I wouldn’t call it Kurosawa’s best… but it’s close. See more Kyle M @RT77296778 Feb 25, 2026 Commended as core influence on Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti western trilogy, with pre-established parallels embodied through Toshiro Mifune’s impressive performance under studious neutrality, Akira Kurosawa’s downscaled mastery is sequentially elegant without much dimensional engagement from missed potential complexity to transcend its definitive positional alignment. (B) See more Carlo U @RT64595470 Nov 2, 2025 This movie may not speak as much to younger viewers as to those of us who have already experienced all or most of our careers, only to ask ourselves whether any of it mattered in the long run. If you’re more of the older viewer, this movie will definitely make you think critically about your own life, if you haven’t already done so. What do we do that is of lasting value and meaning? See more Julian Rex M @Julian_M Aug 23, 2025 Thematically simplistic but emotionally layered, Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru is a powerfully resonant exploration of mortality, death, and the fulfillment of life that expertly balances its technical genius with Takashi Shimura's bottomlessly affecting performance. See more Virgo V @vision Jul 23, 2025 Ikiru (To Live) is a 1952 Japanese tragedy film directed by Akira Kurosawa from a screenplay co-written with Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni. The screenplay was partly inspired by Leo Tolstoy's 1886 novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich. It stars Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko and Miki Odagiri. The music was done by Fumio Hayasaka. It was produced by Sōjirō Motoki and distributed by Toho Company, Limited. In 2009, the film was voted at No. 13 on the list of "The Greatest Japanese Films of All Time" by Japanese film magazine Kinema Junpo. The film was included in BBC's 2018 list of The 100 greatest foreign language films. Conversely, in 2016 The Daily Telegraph named it one of the 10 most overrated films. It was awarded the Special Prize of the Senate of Berlin at the Berlin International Film Festival. It was awarded Best Film at the 1953 Kinema Junpo Awards. It was awarded Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Sound Recording at the 1953 Mainichi Film Awards. Ikiru was remade as a Japanese television film that debuted on TV Asahi on 9 September 2007, the day after a remake of Kurosawa's High and Low. Anand, a 1971 Indian-Hindi film, was inspired by Ikiru. A British remake titled Living, adapted by Kazuo Ishiguro, directed by Oliver Hermanus, and starring Bill Nighy, was released in 2022. Vision wrote: “the film was absolutely brilliant. From the direction, performance by Takashi, the production and screenplay, there are elements in the film that have inspired us all. The film examines the struggles of a terminally ill Tokyo bureaucrat (played by Takashi Shimura) and his final quest for meaning or even living. The film explores the decaying family life in Japan. Takashi Shimura showcases his qualities. Akira Kurosawa does it again! I disliked the backtalk that went on between his peers during his ceremonial demise. It dragged on for too long. Overall, three and a half fries!” See more Stephen C @bob25009 Jun 7, 2025 Success in 2 hours and 23 minutes!!!!!!!!!!! In Japanese and English versions with English subtitles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Read all reviews

Ikiru

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING