Japan Release: 1965
Running Time: 185 minutes

Red Beard

赤ひげ
[Akahige]

Doctor Noboru Yasumoto is unexpectedly summoned to the rural Koishikawa Medical Clinic for post-graduate training. Led by the stern Doctor Kyojo Niide, known as "Red Beard," the clinic treats the region's poor. To Yasumoto's surprise and frustration, he is told to start working there immediately, having expected a more prestigious position with a shogunate. He resents the situation, suspecting that either Red Beard wants access to his professional notes or that a female acquaintance's father orchestrated this to remove him. However, as Yasumoto witnesses Red Beard's methods and gets to know the clinic's patients, he begins to see the medical profession in a new light...

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Red Beard

Red Beard
US Distributor: Toho (1966) / Time: 185 minutes

Red Beard
[Literal translation]

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Background and Trivia

• Toho submitted the film to the US copyright office on March 27th, 1987 with the registration number of PA0000409341. The title used was its international title Red Beard with the alternate title being its Romaji title of Akahige.
• Based on the 1959 novel and short story series called "Red Beard's Medical Story" (赤ひげ診療譚 - Akahige Shinryotan) by Shugoro Yamamoto.
• Actor Toshiro Mifune won a best actor award for the film at the 26th Venice International Film Festival.
• The shoot for Red Beard ran way behind schedule. It ended up taking 18 months to shoot. As a result, the film was originally set for an August 1964 release and was delayed repeatedly until being released in April of 1965 instead. Mentioned in Age of the Gods (self-published).
• At one point, during its many delays, the film was slated to be the big New Year's release at the end of 1964. However, another delay pushed it past that deadline, forcing Toho to fast-track Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964) as the New Year's production instead. This is noted in Godzilla Toho Champion Festival Perfection (ISBN: 9784048669993).
• American actor Sidney Poitier visited the set while filming was going on, being there to witness Kamatari Fujiwara's death scene as Rokusuke. Noted in in Age of the Gods (self-published).
• Was the top grossing domestic film of 1965 in Japan. Brought up in Japanese Cinema (ISBN: 9783822831564).

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