Nomugi Pass

Nomugi Pass (Japanese: あゝ野麦峠, Hepburn: Aa Nomugi Tōge; lit. Ah, Nomugi Pass) is a 1979 Japanese film directed by Satsuo Yamamoto.^[2]

Nomugi Pass
Film poster
Directed by	Satsuo Yamamoto
Screenplay by	Yoshi Hattori[1]
Story by	Shigemi Yamamoto[1]
Produced by	Takero Ito Kanji Mochimaru Tokuko Miyaku[1]
Cinematography	Setsuo Kobayashi[1]
Music by	Masaru Sato[1]
Production company	Shin Neon Eiga Production[1]
Distributed by	Toho
Release date	June 9, 1979 (1979-06-09)
Running time	153 minutes[1]
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Premise

An indictment of the treatment of Meiji period silkworkers by their employers and the Empire of Japan.^[3]

Cast

• Shinobu Otake as Mine Masai
• Mieko Harada as Yuki Shinoda
• Chikako Yūri as Hana Mishima
• Yūko Kotegawa as Kiku Shoji
• Rentarō Mikuni as Tokichi Adachi

Production

The film was one of the last made by director Satsuo Yamamoto and was followed by a 1982 sequel, his final work, Nomugi Pass II (Ā, Nomugi tōge: Shinryoku hen).^[1][3]

Release

A roadshow version of the film was released in Japan on June 9, 1979 where it was distributed by Toho.^[1] It received a general release on June 30, 1979.^[1] The film was Toho's highest-grossing film of the year and was the second highest grossing among domestic releases.^[1]

The film was released in the United States with English subtitles by Toho International on December 28, 1979.^[1]

Reception

In Japan, at the 34th Mainichi Film Awards, Nomugi Pass won the awards for Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Score.^[1] At the Japanese Academy Awards, the film won the award for Best Sound, and Best Music Score (Masaru Sato).^[1]