A beloved long-running movie series from Japan about a vagabond peddler that started in 1969 is now winning the hearts of film lovers in France.

The popularity of director Yoji Yamada’s “Otoko wa Tsurai yo” (It’s Tough Being a Man), which portrays personal interactions between people in a traditional district in Tokyo, is surging in France. 

Theories abound as to the sudden popularity of the series, which numbers 50 titles released over 50 years through 2019.

One thing is that these works, which are often referred to as “Tora-san” after its protagonist, apparently appeal to the eyes and tug at the heartstrings of French moviegoers, as they did for generations of Japanese. 

Another is the popularity of Japanese movies in France shot under famed directors.

Especially noteworthy are the works by director Kenji Mizoguchi, who inspired Jean-Luc Godard and other famed filmmakers under the French New Wave movement.

Productions of Yasujiro Ozu are alike well known for their frequent retrospective screenings.

Yamada was not as famous compared with such creators, including those from his own generation that include Nagisa Oshima.

INITIAL RECEPTION LUKEWARM

In 2008, the operator of a local center to promote Japanese culture, which is called the Maison de la Culture du Japon a Paris, showed three films from the “Otoko wa Tsurai yo” series. However, the attendance was low.

The event was organized under a special program featuring the history of the movie developer and distributor Shochiku Co., in the hopes of celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Japan-France friendship.

“There was a firm tendency among French fans to prefer Japanese movies reflecting strong auteurism,” recalled a Shochiku insider. “Tora-san was steadfastly linked to a populist image, with many considering its style as unsophisticated.”

The tide finally changed, though.

The Maison de la Culture du Japon a Paris started screening all films from “Otoko wa Tsurai yo” under the program “Un An avec Tora-san” (A year with Tora-san) between November 2021 and January this year.

Half to 80 percent of the 280 seats available were filled each time, whereas even the past displays of works by Japan’s representative film maestros, such as Ozu and Mizoguchi, drew up to 30 to 40 moviegoers.

Several titles from “Otoko wa Tsurai yo” were thus screened again. The franchise’s third screening has already been scheduled.

Watching “Otoko wa Tsurai yo,” the audience broke into laughter and applause at times. Some spectators were seen enjoying watching Tora-san with tears in their eyes.

The center operator said 60 percent of the visitors were French, exceeding the ratio of their Japanese counterparts.

RELATING TO TORA-SAN

Claude Leblanc, 59, a journalist in France who is knowledgeable about the Tora-san series, pointed out the franchise’s popularity represents the latest example of the European nation’s growing interest in the “hidden aspects of Japan,” beyond the Asian state’s renowned industries of manga and advanced technology.

Another reason cited by Leblanc involves the valuing of family ties that is characteristic of French citizens.

He speculates that audience members can relate to the romantic difficulties that plague the protagonist in “Otoko wa Tsurai yo.”

Tora-san falls in love with a leading lady, but is either rejected or decides to let her go on his own. He then sets off on a new trip in disappointment.

His younger sister, Sakura, as well as Tora-san’s uncle and aunt at a Japanese-style dumpling shop, always warmly welcome Tora-san back home.

“Tora-san movies present an ideal form of family and community, now that connections with neighbors have been severed and families dismantled, contributing to the looming of a society of isolation,” argued Leblanc.

The COVID-19 pandemic could be driving the trend, too.

“Sharing time at cinemas with others might look attractive in particular after cities were plunged into strict lockdowns for prolonged periods,” said Leblanc.

The French can also relate to embracing humor and comedy for enriching one's own life.

Tora-san’s utterances of a succession of casual but fashionable lines in his unique speaking style, combined with all the other characters' sharp wit, helped popularize the franchise.

Leblanc was won over by the series’ emotional protagonists and realistic depiction of Japan on the screen so much that he published the book “Le Japon vu par Yamada Yoji” (Japan as seen by Yoji Yamada) as a French commentary to “Otoko wa Tsurai yo.”

According to Leblanc’s accounts, cinemas from northern Lille to eastern Strasbourg, western Le Mans, southern Toulouse and elsewhere across France are wanting to show “Otoko wa Tsurai yo.”

Screenings are expected to take place in those regions in the near future.

TORA-SAN SEEN AS SEXY MAN

Director Yamada said he was absorbed in French comedies by Marcel Pagnol and other writers during his student days.

“Rooted in them was the generous spirit to live their lives while accepting and embracing humans’ foolishness and ridiculousness,” he stated. “This may be called the origin of Tora-san.”

Yamada said the late film critic Nagaharu Yodogawa described Tora-san in bygone days as exuding a kind of “male sexiness” that differs from eroticism.

“I believe his male sexiness and naiveness constitute part of his irresistible attraction to French fans,” he said.