, also called ''Torasan and a Paper Balloon'' in some regions, is a 1981 Japanese comedy film directed by

Yoji Yamada is a Japanese film director best known for his ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series of films and his Samurai Trilogy (''The Twilight Samurai'', ''The Hidden Blade'' and '' Love and Honor''). Biography He was born in Osaka, but due to his father's job ...

. It stars

Kiyoshi Atsumi Kiyoshi Atsumi (渥美清 ''Atsumi Kiyoshi''), born Yasuo Tadokoro (田所康雄 ''Tadokoro Yasuo'', 10 March 1928 – 4 August 1996), was a Japanese actor. He was born in Tokyo, and started his career in 1951 as a comedian at a strip-show the ...

as Torajirō Kuruma (Tora-san), and Mikiko Otonashi as his love interest or "Madonna". ''Tora-san's Promise'' is the twenty-eighth entry in the popular, long-running ''

Otoko wa Tsurai yo is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as , a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as "Tora-san" by its fans. Spanning 48 installments released between 1969 and 1995, all of the ' ...

'' series.

Synopsis

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.

Cast

as Torajirō *

Chieko Baisho is a Japanese actress and singer. In Japan, she is well known for her performance as Sakura in the ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series from 1969 until 1995. In addition, she has acted in many films directed by Yōji Yamada since the 1960s. She won th ...

as Sakura * Mikiko Otonashi as Mitsue Kuratomi *

Kayoko Kishimoto is an actress. She appeared in several of Takeshi Kitano's films, such as ''Hana-bi'', ''Kikujiro'' and ''Dolls''. She won the award for best supporting actress at the 23rd Japan Academy Prize for ''Kikujiro''. Biography In 1976 at a Hideki S ...

as Aiko Odajima * Shimojo Masami as Kuruma Tatsuzō *

Chieko Misaki Chieko (written: , , , , or ) is a feminine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese sprint canoeist *, blind Japanese computer scientist *, Japanese actress and singer *, Japanese voice actress and singer *, Japanes ...

as Tsune Kuruma (Torajiro's aunt) *

Hiroshi Inuzuka (born 23 March 1929, Tokyo) is a Japanese actor, comedian and bassist. Inuzuka is one of the members of the Crazy Cats. His first starring role in the film was in ''Suteki na Konban wa'' directed by Yoshitarō Nomura and played the leading rol ...

as Shigeru *

Gin Maeda (born February 21, 1944) is a Japanese actor. He had a regular role in the ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' films, beginning with the first in the series (1969), as Sakura's husband. Filmography Film *''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series (1969–2019), Hiroshi S ...

as Hiroshi Suwa *

Takeo Chii was a Japanese actor. He appeared in more than 70 films between 1968 and 2012. Biography Chii was the youngest of eight brothers. He made his acting debut in 1968. He made his film debut with Kihachi Okamoto's '' Kill!''. Chii married actress ...

as Kenkichi Odajima *

Hidetaka Yoshioka is a Japanese actor known for his performance in several movies as a child and lately the award-winning TV drama Dr. Coto's Clinic. He notably played the part of Tora-san's little nephew in the "Otoko wa Tsurai yo" film series, and he appeared ...

as Mitsuo Suwa *

Hisao Dazai Hisao (written: 央生, 久生, 久雄, 寿雄, 寿夫, 尚雄, 尚久 or 尚勇) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese voice actor *, Japanese government official *, Japanese baseball player *, Japa ...

as Boss (Umetarō Katsura)

Critical appraisal

Stuart Galbraith IV Stuart Eugene Galbraith IV (born December 29, 1965) is an American film historian, film critic, essayist, and audio commentator. Early life and education Raised in Livonia, Michigan, Galbraith first worked professionally as a film reviewer and ...

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. The German-language site molodezhnaja gives ''Tora-san's Promise'' three and a half out of five stars.

Availability

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

References

Bibliography

English

* * * *

German

Japanese

* * * *

External links

''Tora-san's Promise''
at www.tora-san.jp (official site) {{Yoji Yamada 1981 films Films directed by Yoji Yamada 1981 comedy films 1980s Japanese-language films Otoko wa Tsurai yo films Japanese sequel films Shochiku films Films with screenplays by Yôji Yamada 1980s Japanese films