is a 1988 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

Yoshiko Mita (born October 8, 1941) is a Japanese actress. Born in the city of Osaka, she graduated from Joshibi High School of Art and Design in Suginami, Tokyo. In 1960, she was hired by Toei and made her acting debut. She remained with Toei until 1967, t ...

as his love interest or "Madonna". ''Tora-san's Salad-Day Memorial'' is the fortieth 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. The title comes from

Machi Tawara is a contemporary Japanese writer, translator and poet. Tawara is most famous as a contemporary poet. She is credited with revitalizing the tanka for modern Japanese audiences. Her skill as a translator consist of translating classical Japanese ...

poetry collection ''Salad Anniversary'', on which this movie was based.

Synopsis

In his travels through Japan, Tora-san meets and falls in love with a female doctor, but he is afraid of committing to a relationship.

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 *

as Machiko *

Hiroko Mita is a Japanese actress and former idol singer. Mita debuted as an idol singer in 1982, the same year as Kyōko Koizumi and Akina Nakamori. Her first single, "Kakete Kita Otome" reached number 21 on the Oricon Singles Chart., and her second sin ...

as Yuki * 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) *

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 *

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) * Gajirō Satō as Genkō *

Toshinori Omi is a Japanese actor. Career Born in Tokyo, Omi joined the children's theater troupe Himawari Theatre Group when he was still in kindergarten. He made his film debut at age 13 in Kon Ichikawa's ''Hi no Tori'' (1978) and got his first starring ro ...

as Sei *

Chishū Ryū was a Japanese actor who, in a career lasting 65 years, appeared in over 160 films and about 70 television productions. Early life Ryū was born in Tamamizu Village, Tamana County, a rural area of Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu, the most southe ...

as Gozen-sama *

Tomoko Naraoka is a Japanese actress and narrator. The daughter of a painter, she was born in Komagome, Tokyo, Komagome, Hongō, Tokyo, Hongō (present-day Bunkyō, Tokyo, Bunkyo), in the city of Tokyo City, Tokyo, Japan. She graduated from Joshibi University ...

as Machiko's mother

Critical appraisal

Yoshiko Mita was nominated for Best Actress at the Japan Academy Prize for her role in ''Tora-san's Salad-Day Memorial''. Kevin Thomas at the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' gave the film a positive review. The German-language site molodezhnaja gives ''Tora-san's Salad-Day Memorial'' four out of five stars, labeling it one of the highlights of the series.

Availability

''Tora-san's Salad-Day Memorial'' was released theatrically on December 24, 1988. In Japan, the film has been released on videotape in 1989 and 1996, and in DVD format in 2005 and 2008.

References

Bibliography

English

* * *

German

Japanese

* * * *

External links

''Tora-san's Salad-Day Memorial''
at www.tora-san.jp (official site) {{Yoji Yamada 1988 films Films directed by Yoji Yamada 1988 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