Aka - It's Tough Being
a Man
Sooner or later everyone is going to probably watch a Tora-san film. There
are gazillions of them. Ok, 48 of them in a series that lasted from 1969 to
1995. All starring Kiyoshi Atsumi and most of them directed by and written
by Yoji Yamada (who has also directed some great Samurai films). The only
thing that brought the series to an end was the death of Kiyoshi in 1996.
Usually two of the films came out every year, one in the summer and one around
the New Year. They were as popular in Japan as Father Christmas is here. Even
25 years since the last one they hold a special place in the hearts of the
Japanese. This is the first one I have watched and I wanted to get some insight
into them. I am not sure I did really. In some ways they may be too far outside
of my cultural understanding and yet at the same time many of the emotions
that pass through the film are universal. And at that level they work wonderfully
well. It is the character of Tora-san that I don't quite get.
He is an itinerant seller of cheap goods, going around the country with
his suitcase stuffed with them. He plops himself down on the sidewalk, lays
out his materials and proceeds to sell in a loud and aggressive voice. Perhaps
something Kiyoshi picked up as a comedian in strip shows many years before.
He is not an attractive man - a bit overweight, a face that at times looks
like a pumpkin lantern unlit and often dressed like a low-level Yakuza. His
personality doesn't really make up for it. He is abrasive, unthinking in what
he says, rude and crude especially when he has imbibed too much which he
often does. Every time he tries to involve himself in the affairs of others,
he does so clumsily with poor outcomes and refuses to take responsibility.
He annoys everyone. Other than his younger sister. Not much education and
very aware of his status in society. Friendly to all he meets but just as
likely to browbeat them.
He gets knocked down and yet he keeps going. Maybe that is what the Japanese
liked so much about him. Japan had recovered from the war by this time
and was beginning its economic miracle. Tora-san feels like a throwback to
another time, not a part of this economic recovery really. At least in this
first film he must have reminded people of simpler times. His home that he
returns to in this film is in Tokyo but it is in a small old-fashioned corner
of it of small shops, neighbors who all know each other and each other's business.
Most of the women are wearing kimonos and working hard, having a family are
what is important in their lives. Though I wasn't overwhelmed by this and
I was not expecting to be, I will watch a few others and see if Tora-san
grows on me. See if they tone him down a bit. Not too much as he is a unique
character but stop hitting people at least. Especially your sister, Sakura!
The basic plot of the film is that Tora-san left home, his parents and his
sister twenty years ago because his father abused him. His parents are dead
now and he decides it is time to return to see how his sister Sakura is. His
uncle and aunt are still alive and they run a sweets shop and have brought
up Sakura. Sakura is played by Chieko Baishô and she was to appear as
his sister in nearly all the films. Right from the beginning Tora-san bumbles
his way through things. He accompanies Sakura to a meeting with a prospective
upper class husband and he mucks it up by getting drunk and talking about
farts and going to the bathroom. He later messes up another suitor opportunity.
The family asks him to leave, he does but comes back only to mess up again.
He falls in love to a woman that is clearly not meant for his ilk. But within
all this are some great emotional hits that crawl into you like a bandit
in the night. It was a huge hit, Kiyoshi became a much loved actor and it
just kept going. Like Tora-san does.
