Rhapsody in August

Synopsis

An elderly Nagasaki hibakusha spends a summer caring for her four grandchildren, whose curiosity about the 1945 bombing stirs buried memories and moral questions. When an American nephew from Hawaii visits, the family confronts grief, guilt, and the possibility of reconciliation across generations.

Trailer

Open trailer on YouTube

Cast

Sachiko Murase

Kane (The Grandmother)

Hidetaka Yoshioka

Tateo

Tomoko Otakara

Tami

—

Mieko Suzuki

Minako

Mitsunori Isaki

Shinjiro

Hisashi Igawa

Tadao

Toshie Negishi

Kane's daughter

Chōichirō Kawarasaki

Noboru

Narumi Kayashima

Machino

Richard Gere

Clark (Kane's Nephew)

—

Matsue Ono

—

Kappei Matsumoto

—

Yoshiko Maki

Noriko Honma

Mourner

Natsuyo Kawakami

Kumeko Otowa

—

Michio Kida

—

Shizuko Azuma

Sachio Sakai

Mourner

—

Yoshie Kihira

Crew

Art

• Yoshirō Muraki Production Design
• Kôichi Hamamura Set Decoration

Camera

• Shoji Ueda Director of Photography
• Takao Saitō Director of Photography

Costume & Make-Up

• Kazu Hiro Special Effects Makeup Artist
• Yamada Katsura Wig Designer
• Norio Sano Makeup Artist
• Shoshichiro Ueda Makeup Artist
• Yumiko Fujii Hairstylist
• Sakai Nakao Hairstylist
• Tameyuki Aimi Makeup Artist
• Kazuko Kurosawa Costume Design

Directing

• Akira Kurosawa Director
• Naohito Sakai Assistant Director
• Toru Tanaka Assistant Director
• Vittorio Dalle Ore Assistant Director
• Okihiro Yoneda Assistant Director
• Tsuyoshi Sugino Assistant Director
• Ishirō Honda Assistant Director
• Takashi Koizumi Assistant Director

Editing

• Akira Kurosawa Editor

Production

• Toru Okuyama Executive Producer
• Hisao Kurosawa Producer
• Teruyo Nogami Production Manager

Sound

• Ichirô Minawa Sound Effects Editor
• Masatoshi Saito Sound Effects Editor
• Soichi Inoue Sound Assistant
• Kenichi Benitani Sound
• Shinichiro Ikebe Original Music Composer

Writing

• Kiyoko Murata Novel
• Ishirō Honda Screenplay
• Akira Kurosawa Screenplay