Overview
A gripping tale of honor and revenge unfolds in the heart of feudal Japan.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- austere
- brooding
- tragic
- serious film night
- classic cinema viewing
What critics said
Critics overwhelmingly regard Kobayashi's measured, visually precise samurai tragedy as a major Japanese classic, praising its construction, performance, and ethical force despite its severe violence and deliberate pace.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Hanshiro Tsugumo uses the house's own bushido rules to reveal the cruelty and hypocrisy of the feudal clan.
Tsugumo's visit to the lord's house becomes a controlled recounting of Motome Chijiiwa's fate and the circumstances behind it.
Kobayashi repeatedly frames the clan courtyard through measured tracking shots, slow zooms, overhead views, and poised immobility.
Peace dissolves warrior clans, leaving ronin impoverished and forcing families to sell the tools of their former status.
Films like Harakiri, and why
The Human Condition
shares samurai cinema, moral confrontation, institutional cruelty, and austere historical drama
The Ballad of Narayama
shares black-and-white historical filmmaking, tragic ethical conflict, and formally composed social critique
Samurai Rebellion
shares samurai code, revenge, anti-feudal critique, and tense period action
Throne of Blood
shares ritualized violence, revenge structure, and psychologically intense japanese period drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Masaki Kobayashi
- Release Date
- 1962-09-15
- Runtime
- 135 min
- Rating
- 8.5 / 10 (1291)
Cast
- Tatsuya Nakadai
- Akira Ishihama
- Shima Iwashita
- Tetsuro Tamba
- Masao Mishima
- Ichirō Nakatani
- Kei Satō
- Yoshio Inaba
- Hisashi Igawa
- Toru Takeuchi
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Criterion Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Harakiri about?
- An impoverished ronin turns a formal request for seppuku into a devastating indictment of feudal honor and institutional cruelty.
- What is Harakiri like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Harakiri as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Harakiri violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Harakiri as graphic.
- What did critics think of Harakiri?
- Critics overwhelmingly regard Kobayashi's measured, visually precise samurai tragedy as a major Japanese classic, praising its construction, performance, and ethical force despite its severe violence and deliberate pace.
- Which films are like Harakiri?
- Films with a similar feel include The Human Condition, The Ballad of Narayama, Samurai Rebellion, and Throne of Blood.
- How long is Harakiri?
- Harakiri runs 135 minutes.
- Where can I watch Harakiri?
- In United States, Harakiri streams on Criterion Channel.
