Appassionata (序の舞) 40 years old

Appassionata

This story is based on the novel "Jo no mai" by Tomiko Miyao which is based on the life of painter Shōen Uemura (1875–1949), the first woman to be awarded the Order of Culture. The title refers to the masterpiece bijinga ("picture of a beautiful woman") that Uemura painted at the age of 61. The main character, Tsuya Shimamura, is born in Kyoto as the second daughter of a tea trader who dies before her birth. Tsuya, who loves painting more than anything and is hopeless at housework, attends art school and at age 15 receives the name Shōsui (from the characters for "pine" and "green") from her teacher. The crown prince of England purchases one of her works, propelling her to fame overnight. The novel portrays the remainder of her stormy life, during which she is impregnated by her teacher and raises a fatherless child; through it all she devotes herself to her painting, undaunted.

Credits

Appassionata Cast

Name Character
Etsuko Ichihara She was 47, 82 years old when she died
Shirô Ôsaka He was 63, 69 years old when he died
Kei Sato He was 55, 81 years old when he died
Mariko Okada She was 51, now 91 years old as Sei Shimamura
Morio Kazama He was 34, now 75 years old
Mieko Takamine She was 65, 71 years old when she died
Yûko Natori
Kin Sugai She was 57, 92 years old when she died
Junkichi Orimoto He was 56, 92 years old when he died
Mikio Narita He was 48, 55 years old when he died
Ken'ichi Nagira
Tsuyako Okajima She was 75, 80 years old when she died
Kunihiko Mitamura He was 30, now 71 years old
Ayako Kobayashi She was 11, now 52 years old as Sei as a girl

Appassionata Crew

Name Department
Sadao Nakajima as Director. He was 49 (now 90) years old Directing
Tomiko Miyao as Original Story. She was 57 (88) years old when She died Writing
Appassionata poster
Appassionata (40 years)

  • Release day: Saturday, January 14, 1984
  • Runtime: 145 minutes