Rating: 
Summary: Occasionally quite moving but a bit too sentimental
Review: I don't profess to be an expert on the films of acclaimed Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, but I will say that, though I haven't seen a great many of his films, I've definitely admired the ones I have seen. Films like RASHOMON, THE SEVEN SAMURAI, and THRONE OF BLOOD show a director that not only has an acute visual sense---I have never seen equalled the unforgettable images of the moving trees and then Toshiro Mifune with all the arrows launched at him at the end of THRONE OF BLOOD---but also a human sensitivity that may be more flamboyant and theatrical in style than his Japanese counterpart Yasujiro Ozu, but is no less impressive. He is a true film artist, to be sure...but, though IKIRU is often called one of Kurosawa's most human film achievements, I personally would not quite put it in the same level as those aforementioned three.Not that it's not moving. The first half of the film actually made me shed quite a few tears, watching poor Kanji Watanabe first find out he has stomach cancer, and then try to actually have some fun with his life. His attempts to do so are quite touching, even though it does not always work out---esp. with the girl that eventually gets annoyed with him b/c he insists on hanging out with her so much. Finally, he decides to do something noble for the people he works for, and thus we get to the second half of the film: Mr. Watanabe's wake, in which colleagues reminisce about the noble act he accomplished for a town before he died. His act---he steps over bureaucratic lines and gets built a children's park in an area where there was only a dirty pool of water previously---slowly inspires the others to perhaps break out of their bureaucratic mold...and perhaps will inspire you too, in a different way. I dunno, though...I was inspired but only sometimes moved by this film. For me, I think Kurosawa's penchant for lack of subtlety and heavy-handed sentimentality sometimes mutes its power. Kurosawa, for example, is not content to simply allow us to visually observe how lifeless our hero truly is at the beginning: no, he must give us a voiceover that drums it into our head that "this man has not truly lived." And then there is the scene in the bar in the middle of the film, in which Watanabe sings, with tears coming out of his eyes, a mushy song that expresses his feelings of hopelessness and despair. If nothing else, though, the second half of the film seems to expose this unfortunate tendency---a very long scene, intercut with flashbacks, set in Watanabe's wake in which his fellow workers first try to deny Watanabe's deep heroism, but then eventually resolve to be as noble as he was in his last months of life. It is certainly intriguing structurally, as we see the effects of his death on fellow workers and the townspeople Watanabe helped so greatly. And yet I think, could this scene not have been just as effective as simply an epilogue rather than the focus of the entire second part of the film? I'm sure Kurosawa could have made his point---he is showing how one man's heroism can deeply affect other people---without becoming as repetitious and even preachy as this portion of the film sometimes seemed. And yet, if IKIRU is a flawed film, at least its flaws always spring from an honest desire to lift up his audience in a way that SEVEN SAMURAI and THRONE OF BLOOD do not even try to do. It may be sentimental, but it is always honestly felt, and perhaps you might be much less resistant to Kurosawa's sentimental excesses than I occasionally was. As Watanabe, Takashi Shimura gives an unforgettable performance (esp. with that hauntingly raspy voice of his); and Kurosawa does create a final moving image of Watanabe swinging on the swing in the new park, singing that same song he sang at the bar, but in a different, perhaps more joyful manner. That image just goes to show you that Kurosawa was, above all else, a masterly visual artist in his films. If he had relied more on his sense of powerful imagery to make his point, IKIRU might have been a truly great film, instead of one that perhaps tries too hard to be deeply moving. And yet I would be lying if I said that I wasn't affected by the film. Perhaps some of you might not mind the occasional preachiness in this film and will find this a truly transcendant film experience. For me, it almost got there, but not quite. Still, IKIRU is a good film that deserves to be seen for its powerful message, if nothing else. Maybe it will really change your life. Recommended (with some reservations).
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect
Review: This is only one of two or three films that actually made me cry. Incredibly gentle, touching affirmation of life. This is the real deal, not trumped up Hollywood trash. What I mean is, this rings true and loud to real life. When the main character Watanabe, finds out he has cancer and details with pinpoint clarity the exact manner in which he has wasted his life...well, needless to say, this old boy was truly moved.
Rating:
Summary: Domestic Bliss
Review: Tearjerkers have been enjoying something of a revival in Japan recently. Last year's "Sekai no Chushin de, Ai o Sakebu" (Crying Out Love, At the Center of the World) - the pitch: high-school sweetheart dies of leukemia, very slowly indeed - was a monster domestic hit, while the more recent, no less weepy "Ima, Ai ni Yukimasu" looks set to pull a similar trick. Neither film could be faulted for emotional punch - however manipulative - but the nagging doubt remained: why bother, when you've got "Ikiru"? Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece (and, yes, there's a bulging lexicon to choose out of there, but nevermind) may be showing its age - dodgy print quality, iffy sound, etc. - but its potency remains undiminished. Put simply: in a just world, this would trump "It's a Wonderful Life" for the Christmas TV slot every year.
When a humble bureaucrat, nearing the end of his career, discovers that he has terminal cancer, he sets out to achieve something meaningful with what remains of his life. In any other film, that would probably mean finding a cure for AIDS or saving the local orphanage, but Kurosawa is far too subtle for that. His hero is a man of humble means and, accordingly, his final, lasting testament is far from awe-inspiring. The thing is, though, it still counts for something.
Kurosawa's films positively resonate with humanity: even his most iconic samurai pictures never shied away from exposing us for the inconsistent, foible-ridden creatures we are. "Ikiru" is a far more small-scale affair than, say, "Seven Samurai" or "Rashomon", but in the end that's a strength rather than a weakness. Finding hope in the tragic tale of a defeated, pathetic individual, it makes for one of the most life-affirming films you could hope to find.
Rating:
Summary: To live... it is a wonderful thing
Review: There are a lot of movies out there and I have not seen all that many. Yet this movie it touched me, touched me right here *put's hand to heart*. While you can't really call one movie the greatest movie of all time, i'm going out on a limb here, this is one of the top 10 best ever.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent film about life.
Review: This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film.
"Ikiru" which means "To Live" is one of Akira Kurosawa's most beloved films. I also found it very touching.
It is about an ambitious city hall employee who develops an inoperable and incurable stomach cancer. Being terminally ill, he tries to make up for all the lost time he wasted by working too much. After he dies, his family looks back on the last months of his life trying to find out why he suddenly changed.
I found the film to be very impressive in many aspects. Both as a period Japansese film and as one with nice scenery including a panchinko parlor.
The DVD also has some great special features.
Disc 1 contains the film with optional audio commentary by Stephen Prince, who wrote a book on Kurosawa's films. There is also a theatrical trailer.
Disc 2 contains two documentaries about Akira Kurosawa.
The first is part of a series and is about the film and includes interviews with the filmmakers including Kurosawa.
The other is "A Message from Akira Kurosawa" the documentary is about Kurosawa himself and includes many interviews with him on the sets of many of his films.
Rating: 
Summary: Classic movie but HORRIBLE TRANSLATION!!
Review: When I saw this movie for the first time a few months ago, I walked out thinking it lived up to expectations. When I bought the DVD, I was very unimpressed...I didnt remember the subtitled translation being so bad! It almost kills the movie. Knowing some Japanese, I could still understand most of what was happening BUT for I felt pity for anyone who was stuck having to read the subtitles. NEW ENGLISH TRANSLATION PLEASE!!!
Rating:
Summary: Buy the Criterion DVD not an "import"
Review: I'm not going to review "Ikiru" per se, but discuss the "import" DVD version (vs. the Criterion version).
The "import" DVD version of "Ikiru" is an official DVD release of the film by the Hong Kong company Mei Ah. It is not a bootleg (though bootleg versions may also exist).
THE SUBTITLES ON THE MEI AH VERSION ARE SO BAD THAT THE MOVIE IS NEARLY UNWATCHABLE. The English subtitles are a translation of the Chinese subtitles/translation of the original Japanese dialogue. This is evident because the Japanese characters bizarrely have Chinese names. As a result, the English grammar is atrociously poor even by typical Hong Kong standards (and this is coming from someone who watches a LOT of subtitled Hong Kong movies). Think about that for a second:
Japanese ---> Chinese ---> Garbled English ---> scratching your head trying to figure out what characters are talking about
Plus, the Mei Ah DVD is a "flipper", i.e. a double-sided disc that you need to turn over in the middle of the movie.
So my recommendation is to stick with the Criterion version. It is worth the price. If you think you can save money by buying the import version, do this instead:
1) with a magic marker write "IKIRU" on the front of a ten dollar bill
2) burn it
That will cost the same as the import DVD and will be a much more satisfying viewing experience.
Rating:
Summary: Kurosawa's Greatest.
Review: Simply put, this film belongs in your library. Period. Buy it now.
Oh, you're one of those people who needs to reasoned with, huh? Okay.
When people think of Kurosawa, they think of his period films - Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, Ran. Those are all fantastic. Some Kurosawa films are better than others, but none of them are bad. But people forget that a large part of his career was taken up with (then) contemporary fare. What makes Ikiru special?
The comibnation of craft and content. The movie is exceptionally made. The lighting, the compositions, and the editing all do what they are meant to: come together to advance and develop the story. They do so in a way that is definitely stylish, but unlike so many modern filmmakers, they style serves the story, not the other way around. Kurosawa's camera complements, comments upon, and enhances what it captures. As a study of black and white cinematography, it is pricelessly. Some would criticize its long run time and deliberate pace, common criticisms of Kurosawa. But any story worth telling is worth telling in its own time, and the pacing is dead on for the content.
What is that content? Perennial Kurosawa collaborator Takashi Shimura (Seven Samurai) stars as Kanji Watanabe, a slug-like department head in the Tokyo city bureaucracy. He's unloved by his minions, unappreciated by his family, and unnoticed by life. The film deals with his gradual transformation upon learning that he has terminal cancer. Though often grueling, it's ultimately a triumphant movie, and not in that false, schmaltzy and sentimental way that most contemporary movies deliver.The protagonist achieves his transfiguration, but he does it silently and anoymously, and at the end, few even understand what he's done. Just like real life.
Although Japanese, and presenting a fascinating glimpse into that culture, it is also universal (Kurosawa was often criticized in his homeland for not being Japanese enough, whatever the hell that means). If you are at all interested in the history of film, or what goes into good filmmaking, or even if you just love a good story well told, you should look into this movie. Sure, it's a little pricey, but you've been good, right? Reward yourself.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best movies you'll ever see
Review: The basic plot of the movie doesn't say much: A petty bureaucrat discovers that he has cancer, his life has been meaningless, and he dies. Within that simply outline,however, lies one of the finest examples of film making and acting. The absolutely luminous portrayal of this man as he tries to make peace with his life makes most academy award performances look tawdry by comparison. The direction is without flaw. The Japanese seem to love a sense of poignancy and nostalgia in their art, and this film is absolutely the best example, also, of that love. See this film if you want to see how a movie should be made!
Rating:
Summary: On 'Ikiru'
Review: I am not very much a film person.I have heard of Akira Kurosawa for very long, and finally settled to watch 'Ikiru' because it is mentioned in Christopher Alexander's book 'The Timeless Way of Building'. I did not even know that the film was by Kurosawa in the first place.
Having watched it, I think it is a most excellent film (I personally prefer it to 'Citizen Kane'.)Do not be misguided by reviewers who complain that it is too slow; they are simply too accustomed to Hollywood-style entertainment.
The film begins with an X-Ray of Watanabe, who is diagnosed with stomach cancer. An omniscient narrator introduces him as the protagonist, and we see him at his desk piled with papers. He has served as a department head at the City Hall for more than thirty years, each day as predictable as the last, doing a most routine and mundane job which is almost as good as doing nothing.
One day, he goes for a consultation and is struck with the horrific truth that he has perhaps six months or less to live, and he begins to question his existence after realising that he has more or less wasted his whole life at the mindless job, which we are later told that he works so hard simply because of his son.
Flashbacks in the film reveal that his wife has passed away when his son was very young, and he recalls how he gave priority to work rather than stayed with his son for an appendix operation. All that he has now is a certificate (that says '30 years of dedicated work and contribution) and more than 50 000 yen that he does not know how to spend after being a miser for all his life, which adds bitter irony to the film.
Watanabe stops going to work, and it causes some stir at his workplace. Hoping to make up for his lost years, Watanabe tries to get closer to his son, who is now grown up and married and is more interested in Watanabe's retirement pension for a larger house. Watanabe's daughter-in-law also has the same selfish interest.
Out of solitude and despair, Watanabe goes to drink expensive sake for the first time of his life and meets a young writer, who tries to teach Watanabe how to 'live life' by bringing him to pubs, dance floors and striptease performances, none of which make Watanabe really happy.
The days go by, and each day Watanabe feels that he cannot die until he learns what it means to live (hence the title 'Ikiru', which means 'To Live').
A former female colleague spends time with him eating, talking and having fun at the movie theatres and ice-skating rings. All these give him meaning and joy because it gives him a sense of belonging as if they were part of the same family, but rumours and misunderstandings begin and everyone at his workplace and even his son suspects that he is having an affair with the young lady.
During a breakfast confrontation, Watanabe tries to reveal to his son his fatal health condition, but before he has a chance to finish, his son reprimands him for his 'disgraceful behavior' with his former colleague.
Watanabe is devastated, and even more so when his former colleague tells him it is their last outing once and for all because she does not know where things are heading to. Out of sheer desperation, Watanabe reveals his condition to her, and seeks an answer for 'Why are you so alive?', because his numbered days are slowly coming to an end without having 'lived'. The lady could not give him an answer, but he soon sees his own answer to the question...
Thus ended the first part of the film.
The second part of the film -- to cut the long story short -- is essentially conversation at his wake with flashbacks of him by various people (this is very much like 'Citizen Kane'). Watanabe has died. Through different eyes, we see Watanabe carrying out the singular, last, purposeful project of his life. After having been abandoned and misunderstood by the whole world, especially his son whom he worked for all his life, and at the same time combating a chronic disease, Watanabe sees through the project with insurmountable determination in spite of the impossible obstacles to overcome.
During the project, no one knows that Watanabe is going to die, though he does appear sickly and frail. There is a beautiful shot of him at a sunset, saying 'I've never marvelled at the beauty of sunset for thirty years; it is so beautiful, but I do not have that kind of time now.'
I'm not sure if other reviewers have revealed what the project is, but the final flashback of him dying in a snow scene is so unbearably poignant and beautiful it redeems everything.
This is a life-affirming film that I strongly recommend everyone to watch, because it successfully questions the meaning and purpose of existing and living. If you are looking for something life-changing, this is certainly one of the best examples.
Best watched with tissues if you are the kind that is easily moved to tears.
Deeply moving, and profoundly human!
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