Based on a book by noted novelist Shusaku Endo, this film concerns three lost souls looking for meaning and redemption: Mitsuko Naruse (Kumiko Akiyoshi) is a recent divorcee still wracked with a guilty conscious; Isobe (Hisashi Igawa) is a white-collar worker morning the death of his wife to cancer; and elderly Kiguchi (Yoichi Numata) is still plagued by memories of the War. All three find themselves on the tour bus headed towards Benares, an Indian holy site on the banks of the Ganges River. As the film progresses, the ...
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Based on a book by noted novelist Shusaku Endo, this film concerns three lost souls looking for meaning and redemption: Mitsuko Naruse (Kumiko Akiyoshi) is a recent divorcee still wracked with a guilty conscious; Isobe (Hisashi Igawa) is a white-collar worker morning the death of his wife to cancer; and elderly Kiguchi (Yoichi Numata) is still plagued by memories of the War. All three find themselves on the tour bus headed towards Benares, an Indian holy site on the banks of the Ganges River. As the film progresses, the trio are less tourists than pilgrims looking for relief of private demons and spiritual rebirth. Kiguchi tries to understand why he survived in the Burmese jungles while his mates all died. Fulfilling a promise given to his dead wife, Isobe is looking for his wife's reborn soul. Mitsuko looks for Otsu (Eiji Okuda), a Catholic monk and her former lover. This film, which was directed by Kei Kumai, also features performance by screen legend Toshiro Mifune. Jonathan Crow, Rovi
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