Ikiru (1952)

Overview · Where to watch · Cast & crew · Reviews

A big story of a little man which will grip your soul...

Kanji Watanabe is a middle-aged man who has worked in the same monotonous bureaucratic position for decades. Learning he has cancer, he starts to look for the meaning of his life.

• Released: 1952-10-09
• Genres: Drama
• Runtime: 2h 23m
• Status: Released
• TMDB rating: 8.3/10 from 1,396 votes

Directed by Akira Kurosawa.

Top cast

• Takashi Shimura as Kanji Watanabe
• Haruo Tanaka as Sakai
• Nobuo Kaneko as Mitsuo, son of Kanji
• Bokuzen Hidari as Ohara
• Miki Odagiri as Toyo
• Shinichi Himori as Kimura
• Minoru Chiaki as Noguchi
• Minosuke Yamada as Subordinate Clerk Saito
• Kamatari Fujiwara as Sub-Section Chief Ono
• Makoto Kobori as Kiichi Watanabe, Kanji's Brother

Full cast & crew

Where to watch Ikiru

• United States: stream on HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max; watch free on Kanopy; rent on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home; buy on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
• United Kingdom: stream on BFI Player, BFI Player Amazon Channel, BFI Player Apple TV Channel; rent on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video; buy on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video
• Canada: stream on Criterion Channel; rent on Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube; buy on Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
• Australia: rent on Apple TV Store; buy on Apple TV Store

Movies like Ikiru

If you enjoyed Ikiru, these movies have a similar feel:

• Perfect Days (2023)
• Tokyo Story (1953)
• The Human Condition I: No Greater Love (1959)
• All of a Sudden (2026)
• The Life of Chuck (2025)
• Hereafter (2010)
• An Autumn Afternoon (1962)
• Happy Hour (2015)
• The Sea of Trees (2016)
• From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
• The Colors Within (2024)
• Bang the Drum Slowly (1973)

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