Tampopo [The Criterion Collection]

I originally got to watch this at an arthouse cinema in Liverpool, I then watched it several more times without getting bored. When I went to college a lecturer screened clips of it to emphasise the importance of observation as a market research tool - a lesson that has stuck with me to this day. Decades later I get Tampopo on Blu-Ray via Criterion Collection re-issue. The print is way richer and better than what I saw a few times in Liverpool and it still holds my interest. Ramen western? Before we get into the film I want dispel the idea of the ramen western. Every magazine review you see of Tampopo will use the term 'ramen western' which was apparently coined by publicists during its international release. It's a lazy phrase in the case of Tampopo for a number of reasons. Yes, one of the protagonists has some clothing that might evoke the image of a cowboy, but that's like writing the entire film from a few curated still images. The clothing is more about evoking the rugged individuality of a truck driver, in a largely conformist society. Their neckerchief is more about lorry cabs having no air conditioning at the time. The best spaghetti westerns like A Fist Full of Dollars actually were adaptions of Japanese films. In the case of A Fist Full of Dollars, it's the retelling in western setting of the Akira Kurosawa film Yojimbo. So the Ramen Western reference is basically saying 'it's a Japanese interpretation set around a neighbourhood restaurant of an Italian plagarisation of a Japanese samurai film classic'. The reality is that Tampopo is more complex than the simplistic ramen western label would have you believe. Juzo Itami Director Juzo Itami was an auteur: actor, script writer and director. Tampopo was his second feature film and he would eventually direct eight more. Itami's later films courted controversy with him being attacked by Yakuza members. His eventual suicide is widely believed to have been staged by members of the yakuza to prevent a film that discussed the gang's links with a buddhist movement. Back to Tampopo Tampopo revolves around food as art and food is also the MacGuffin for the film. In the main story, a widow is struggling to manage her ramen shop following the death of her husband the cook and shop owner. A jobbing truck driver and drivers mate stop to eat and get sucked into a quest. The widow who is named Tampopo (Japanese for Dandelion), the truck driver and driver's mate to make great ramen and rejuvenate the fortunes of the shop. So if Tampopo isn't a ramen western, what is it? The simple answer would be an action comedy revolving around a ramen shop and the art of cooking. But there is so much more in the film. There is a second story about 'the man in white' which has heavy overtones of French new wave cinema and features a basket of European food fit for a decadent picnic. The fourth wall is broken and one of the characters speaks directly to the audience, adding an additional layer of complexity. We are both audience and (minor) character. Over new wave vignettes in the film include: Salarymen having a meal at a French restaurant A women's etiquette class on how to eat spaghetti silently in the European manner Supermarket staff stopping an older woman with a compulsion to squeeze food A con man uses an elaborate meal to lure a mark into an scam A woman breast feeds her infant Torakku Yarō There are references due to the plot structure to the idea of the ronin - the unattached samurai helping out common people in the plot structure. But just as important the film references Japanese culture around that time. There is a clear parallel between Tampopo and a series of trucking related comedy films that were made from 1974 - 1979. Torakku Yarō which roughly translates as Truck Guys or Truck Rascals. It is a series of ten films made over a four year period to cater for the popularity of the genre. The plots were standardised. Truck driver falls in love with woman he meets on the road. Truck driver through his actions actually helps her fall in love with another man. Truck driver ends up going on a quest to help reunite the star-crossed lovers under some sort of time restriction. In this case cooking ramen is substituted for the 'other man'. The connections don't stop at the plot structure, one of the main characters Pisken is played by Japanese Italian actor Rikiya Yasuoka - who appeared in the first instalment of the Torakku Yarō series. Torakku Yarō itself was based on an earlier series of comedies called Otoko wa Tsurai yo: translated as It's tough being a man. 48 films were made in this series from 1969 to 1995 based around the same formula. Tora-san falls in love with a woman Tora-san argues with his extended family Tora-san's love of the woman is not reciprocated and he leaves heart-broken While the humour may not fully come out from Tompopo, it's a visual tour-de-force with great acting and a distinctive vision behind the film. I look forward to rewatching it again in the future.

Juzo Itami's film is a sweet, funny, romantic sometimes bizarre but always delectable ode to the multi-layered and multi-flavored relationship between man (or woman) and food. The film's title (which means Dandelion) comes from the name of the protagonist, a middle-aged widow with a bullied kid, struggling to run the Ramen restaurant left by her husband. When cowboy trucker Goro (and his buddy Gun) enter her life after having saved the kid from a beating and fended off her coercive suitor, she finds in their honest criticism of her cooking a chance to improve her skill and make a better life for herself. Goro (and a host of other people, including a band of gourmet hobos) come together to aid Tampopo in honing her craft and and push her to achieve her own holy grail of Ramen. Intersecting this main artery are several vignettes with other characters, all of which explore the almost spiritual importance of food in our lives: In a delicious jab at the culture of subservience and lack of individuality, a junior executive embarrasses his protocol-slave bosses by ordering a stand-out lavishly flavorful meal at a company lunch after all of them have opted for identical bland fare. Another episode shows a sick woman cooking a final family dinner before she drops dead. In some we see people going to desperate, even life-threatening extents to satisfy their food indulgences. Weirdness comes in the thread where a gangster and his moll indulge in kinky food-meets-sex games, including repeatedly passing a raw egg yolk between their lips till it breaks. With this wonderful smorgasbord, Itami, himself a gourmet, expresses his philosophy of food with an almost reverent air. The technical aspects of the film, its visuals and sounds, are dedicated to the service of this meditation. This was one of the early films to have a dedicated food stylist. Assuming you're not a vegan/vegetarian that gets offended by the very sight of animal food (and in one scene a young turtle is killed on camera), I dare you to watch it on an empty stomach without drooling. Like warm soup on a rainy day the film is very cheering, and the plot thread of the gangster with its kinky sex and weird metaphors for virginity is about the only thing that keeps it from being recommended as family fare. Coming off a fresh 4K restoration, the film looks and sounds mouth-watering on Criterion's blu-ray (I got the region B-locked UK release). Apart from the main feature, there's a vintage 90 min making of, hosted by director Itami himself. There are also new interviews with the lead actress (his wife), the food stylist and featurettes about the legacy of the film (including one that talks to a bunch of Ramen noodle restauranters). The cover unfolds as a full-size poster on the back of which is a single decent though not very essential essay.

Tampopo is an off beat Japanese movie from the 1908s. It's all about food, and running through it is the story of a Ramen bar owner - Tampopo of the title - and her quest to become the best Ramen chef on the block. Spoiler alert - with the help of a truck driver who happens to pass by one rainy night for a bowl of Ramen, she succeeds. That's after an odyssey of encounters with rival Ramen chefs and their secret recipes, and which entails lovingly filmed expositions of the various arts of Ramen. Along the way there are a score of myriad diversions into often surreal food based cameo scenes, often beginning with the camera wandering off from the main characters to follow some other group of characters who just happen to be passing. So the director tells us, in the 90 minute making of documentary that comes with main movie - a very informative scene-by-scene account of the intellectual and practical processes that underlie his film. And on top of that, there are cast interviews. The film itself is here reproduced at excellent quality resolution - worthy of this very entertaining, intelligent and playful Japanese classic.

I can't rate this film highly enough, it deserves the "masterpiece" name tag without a doubt. Even if you don't like ramen, spaghetti westerns or sex and food this film will wow you. (BTW the lust is subtle and playful rather than erotic and perverse and is contrasted well by the developing tenderness between a gruff truck driver and a downtrodden chef). This cut is an excellent rendering and the bonus material is also worth a watch especially with an insight from the amazingly beautiful Nobuko Miyamoto who gives us an insight into her strenuous efforts to deliver a convincing performance as well as intimate private conversations that reveal some of Itami's ideas for the developing storyline.

This is a quirky movie - in Japanese with subtitles - with sub plots running along in the story line. Tampopo is a girl in a man's noodle world who is trying to outdo the competition with the help of a few "friends". Noodle shops are an art form in Japan and the right noodles, texture, soup etc are all required to keep the customers coming back. Despite her initial lack of success, things improve of course building up to the finale. There is a new Japanese restaurant chain in Singapore called "Tampopo", but none of the staff have ever heard of the movie - though I imagine the owner has; probably a fan of the movie like me. The food is good too, especially the Black Pig shabu ramen at Liang Court (River Valley Road). If you live in Sing, watch the movie then try to stop yourself visiting the restaurant immediately afterwards!

It is a wonderful sexy hilarious movie about the search for the perfect ramen.

If you love Japanese food, in particular Ramen (noodle soup) and you like comedy, this is without a doubt one of the best movies to watch. A female cook sets up a Ramen Bar and the whole process is shown that goes into delivering a dish that might seam simple but in reality is so hard to elevate to perfection. Mouth watering, tragic comedy which is a must have for all lovers of Asian cuisine out there. Chances are that you've never heard of this one, but I've watched it over three times and whenever I'm into the mood for a mellow, light movie which makes me run out to an Asian restaurant... watch this.

This movie is an old favourite of mine, which I was extremely happy to find through Amazon after years of searching. (My wife didn't like it just quite as much as I did - see: warning.) The main story is, admittedly, predictable. (Clueless female restaurant owner gets unexpected help from strangers and her luck turns.) However, the skillfully interlinked chain of, generally quite absurd, comedic situations is absolutely genial. Of course, much has probably changed in Japan since the film was made. Finally, a warning: A few scenes can be "mildly disturbing" (killing of animals - shrimps, oysters and, of course, a tortoise) or otherwise not suited for young children (food-erotica, violence, blood).

👍👍Très belle histoire, on ne s'ennuie pas 👍

Enligt recensioner skulle det finnas japanskt språk och engelsk subtitles. Det finns endast japansk språk och fransk subtitles. Tyvärr var det lögn!

If you enjoy humorous peeks into another culture, it's got it all: Ramen, Street Fights, Etiquette Lessons, Stinky Abscess, Unhoused Bon Vivants, and more.

Incrível filme, restauração impecável e extras ótimos.

Un film un po' fuori dai canoni. Una bella storia, vari intrecci divertenti, il cibo indiscusso protagonista.