Madadayo

Madadayo (まあだだよ, Mādadayo) is a 1993 Japanese film. It is the thirtieth and final film made by Akira Kurosawa. It was screened out of competition at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. The main story of the film is based on the life of a Japanese academic and author, Hyakken Uchida (1889–1971). The film opens with him resigning as professor of German, in the period immediately before the Second World War. The plot of the film is centered on his relati... more

Madadayo (まあだだよ, Mādadayo) is a 1993 Japanese film. It is the thirtieth and final film made by Akira Kurosawa. It was screened out of competition at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. The main story of the film is based on the life of a Japanese academic and author, Hyakken Uchida (1889–1971). The film opens with him resigning as professor of German, in the period immediately before the Second World War. The plot of the film is centered on his relationship with his former students, who care for him in his old age. The title, Not Yet in English, is an allusion to an ancient Japanese legend mentioned in one scene of the film, of an old man who refuses to die. This story is constantly referred to in the movie, as every year on the old man's birthday, his students throw him a party in which they all ask him, "Mou ii kai?" ("Are you ready?"). He responds by drinking a large ceremonial glass of beer and shouting "Mada dayo!" ("Not yet!"), implying that death may be near, but life still goes on.... less