Monday Morning Maybe

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Poster for The Idiot

The Idiot

Seen it?

1951 | 166 min | Drama, Romance

Sunday Safe Betearly rating

Why it’s a Sunday Safe Bet

Solid across the board without standing out anywhere. A safe bet when you want something reliable.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
A natural pick for history and war-film fans and people who believe in big gestures. It puts you in the middle of the fighting, and doesn't let you forget the cost. Same wavelength as Doctor Zhivago or The Way We Were. The chemistry carries it.
The mood
Warm and romantic.
The pace
A big, patient story, at 2 hr 46 min.
What might put you off
  • It's long: 2 hr 46 min.
  • It's in Japanese, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
  • Made in 1951: an older pace and style.
  • Skip it if you need something light and fast tonight.

A gentle, war-shattered ex-soldier, Kinji Kameda, arrives in wintry Hokkaidō and is pulled into a volatile tangle of love and pity between the disgraced Taeko Nasu, the proud Ayako, and his possessive friend Akama. Kameda’s saintly compassion exposes everyone’s wounds, steering the quartet toward jealousy, violence, and inexorable tragedy. Adapted from Dostoevsky’s novel.

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsSolid

    64% on Rotten Tomatoes

  • AudiencesSolid

    Our audience score: 60%

  • AwardsNot counted

    No major awards or nominations

  • Reach & staying powerSolid

    Streaming release that reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release

  • Buzz & cultural impactSolid

    About 37K people sought it out in the past year

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Cast & crew

Directed by Akira Kurosawa

  • Setsuko HaraTaeko Nasu
  • Masayuki MoriKinji Kameda
  • Toshirō MifuneDenkichi Akama
  • Yoshiko KugaAyako
  • Takashi ShimuraOno, Ayako's father
  • Chieko HigashiyamaSatoko, Ayako's mother
  • Eijirō YanagiTohata
  • Minoru ChiakiMutsuo Kayama, the secretary
  • Noriko SengokuTakako
  • Kokuten KōdōJunpei