A lovable loser salesman wanders Japan with nothing but a suitcase and terrible luck in love.
Anime adaptation of the "Otoko wa Tsurai yo (It's tough being a man)" film series by Youji Yamada. Kuruma Torajirou (or Tora-san), a traveling salesman whose sole possessions include only the contents of a small suitcase, the clothes on his back and some pocket money, wanders from town to town peddling his wares.
Acting
Yamadera's voice work captures Tora-san's aching optimism perfectly.
Direction
Shibuichi honors Yamada's 50-film legacy with visual poetry.
Director
Setsuko Shibuichi
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This anime adapts the 49th film in Japan's longest-running movie series, which starred Kiyoshi Atsumi in 48 films from 1969 until his death in 1996.
Director Setsuko Shibuichi was one of few women directing anime in the 1990s; she specifically requested this project to preserve Tora-san's legacy for younger audiences.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
JP
