Ballad of Narayama

Critics heralded this film, the first of two about the legend of Mount Narayama, as moving and rich in artistry. When humans complain about the world of the present, perhaps they should reflect on life in this Japanese village circa the 1880s. Here is a place where the laws are so Draconian that the police bury robbers alive for their crimes. Worse yet, the elderly are not looked up to for their potential wisdom; instead, they are forced to accept their savage "fate" atop a frigid mountain. In this land live a stiff-necked mother and her widower son. Together, they embark on her last journey...to the peak of Mount Narayama.