The Funeral (1984 film)

For the 1996 American film, see The Funeral (1996 film).
The Funeral
Japanese DVD cover
Directed byJuzo Itami
Written byJuzo Itami
Produced bySeigo Hosogoe
StarringTsutomu Yamazaki
Nobuko Miyamoto
Kin Sugai
Asao Sano
Hideji Ōtaki
Release dates
  • November 17, 1984 (1984-11-17) (Japan)
  • March 16, 1987 (1987-03-16) (USA)
Running time
124 min.
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

The Funeral (お葬式, Osōshiki) is a 1984 Japanese comedy film written and directed by Juzo Itami.

The film shows the preparations for a traditional Japanese funeral. It mixes grief at the loss of a husband and father with wry observations of the various characters as they interact during the three days of preparation.

The Funeral was Itami's feature film debut and was an enormous success in Japan. It won five Japanese Academy Awards in 1985 including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Actor for Tsutomu Yamazaki.[1] It was nominated in a further five categories and also came first in the annual Kinema Junpo critics' poll. In May 2022, the Criterion Collection released a restoration of the film on Blu-ray.[2]

Itami took inspiration for the film from his experience with the funeral of his father-in-law (Nobuko Miyamoto's father).

In 1992, it was screened on the United Kingdom's Channel 4 under the title "Death, Japanese Style".[3]

  1. ^ 第８回日本アカデミー賞優秀作品 (in Japanese). Retrieved 28 March 2013.
  2. ^ "The Funeral (1984-The Criterion Collection". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  3. ^ "Listings – Sunday, 8th March 1992". The Television & Radio Database. Archived from the original on June 21, 2023. Retrieved 2024-05-15.