Mariko Okada
Birthday: 1933-01-11 Place of Birth: Tokyo, Japan
Synopsis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Mariko Okada (1933) is a Japanese actress. She is married to film director Yoshishige Yoshida. Her father was the noted silent film actor Tokihiko Okada, who before his early death (the year following his daughter's birth) starred in Yasujiro Ozu's Tokyo Chorus (1931). As an adult, Mariko herself was cast by Ozu, appearing for example in An Autumn Afternoon (1962), the director's final film. Description above from the Wikipedia article Mariko Okada, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Acting
Heroic Purgatory
Rikiya Shoda is an engineer working for the Atomic Agency in Japan. One day, his wife Nanako returns home with a lost teenager called Ayu. A man, pretending to be the father, comes to get her back; Ayu keeps telling him that Rikiya and Nanako are her parents. Through this disruption, Rikiya suddenly starts remembering his youth as a revolutionary.
An Autumn Afternoon
Shuhei Hirayama is a widower with a 24-year-old daughter. Gradually, he comes to realize that she should not be obliged to look after him for the rest of his life, so he arranges a marriage for her.
Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island
A humble and simple Takezo abandons his life as a knight errant. He's sought as a teacher and vassal by Shogun, Japan's most powerful clan leader. He's also challenged to fight by the supremely confident and skillful Sasaki Kojiro. Takezo agrees to fight Kojiro in a year's time but rejects Shogun's patronage, choosing instead to live on the edge of a village, raising vegetables. He's followed there by Otsu and later by Akemi, both in love with him. The year ends as Takezo assists the villagers against a band of brigands. He seeks Otsu's forgiveness and accepts her love, then sets off across the water to Ganryu Island for his final contest.
Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple
After years on the road establishing his reputation as Japan's greatest fencer, Takezo returns to Kyoto. Otsu waits for him, yet he has come not for her but to challenge the leader of the region's finest school of fencing. To prove his valor and skill, he walks deliberately into ambushes set up by the school's followers. While Otsu waits, Akemi also seeks him, expressing her desires directly. Meanwhile, Takezo is observed by Sasaki Kojiro, a brilliant young fighter, confident he can dethrone Takezo. After leaving Kyoto in triumph, Takezo declares his love for Otsu, but in a way that dishonors her and shames him. Once again, he leaves alone.
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
Struggling to elevate himself from his low caste in 17th century Japan, Miyamoto trains to become a mighty samurai warrior.
