By: Hisao Oshima
Kyushu University
Japan
Abstract:
Masahiro Kobayashi’s Film Trilogy, Haru’s Journey (2010), Japan’s Tragedy (2013), and Lear on the Shore (2016), focus on Japan’s most serious social issue of aging, featuring Tatsuya Nakadai, the most famous Shakespearean actor in Japan. This paper examines how Kobayashi probes into issues of the aging Japanese society, especially those of families, with the three old protagonists: Tadao, Fujio Murai, Chokitsu Kuwabata. Playing the roles, Nakadai, also fighting against negative effects of the aging process, revealed serious issues of aging through his versatile performances captured by Kobayashi’s masterful filmic direction.
Keywords: Masahiro Kobayashi, Tatsuya Nakadai, Japan’s Issues of Aging, Haru’s Journey, Japan’s Tragedy, Lear on the Shore
To cite as: Oshima, H., 2025, “Japan’s Aging Crisis and Masahiro Kobayashi’s Film Trilogy: Haru’s Journey (2010), Japan’s Tragedy (2013), and Lear on the Shore (2016),” PsyArt 29.1, pp. 80-86.