aka Torasan's Song of the Seagull is a 1980 Japanese comedy film directed by Yoji Yamada

Yoji Yamada

is a Japanese film director best known for his Otoko wa Tsurai yo series of films and his Samurai Trilogy ....

. It stars Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi , born Yasuo Tadokoro , was a Japanese film actor....

 as Torajirō Kuruma (Tora-san), and Ran Itō

Ran Ito

is a Japanese actress and previous member of the 1970s idol group Candies. She is married to Mizutani Yutaka, a famous actor in Japan. She won the award for best supporting actress at the 2nd Yokohama Film Festival for Disciples of Hippocrates.-Filmography:...

 as his love interest or "Madonna". Foster Daddy, Tora! is the twenty-sixth entry in the popular, long-running Otoko wa Tsurai yo

Otoko wa Tsurai yo

Otoko wa tsurai yo is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as "Tora-san" , a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as "Tora-san" by its fans...

series.

Synopsis

Tor-san takes care of the teenage daughter of a friend after he dies. He takes the girl to Tokyo where she wishes to study, and becomes worried over her romantic life.

Cast

• Kiyoshi Atsumi
  Kiyoshi Atsumi
  Kiyoshi Atsumi , born Yasuo Tadokoro , was a Japanese film actor....
  
   as Torajirō
• Chieko Baishō
  Chieko Baisho
  is a Japanese actress and singer.In Japan, she is well known for her performance as Sakura in the Otoko wa Tsurai yo series . In addition, she has acted in most films directed by Yōji Yamada since the 1960s...
  
   as Sakura
• Ran Itō
  Ran Ito
  is a Japanese actress and previous member of the 1970s idol group Candies. She is married to Mizutani Yutaka, a famous actor in Japan. She won the award for best supporting actress at the 2nd Yokohama Film Festival for Disciples of Hippocrates.-Filmography:...
  
   as Sumire
• Shimojo Masami as Kuruma Tatsuzō
• Chieko Misaki as Tsune Kuruma (Torajiro's aunt)
• Gin Maeda as Hiroshi Suwa
• Hayato Nakamura as Mitsuo Suwa
• Hisao Dazai as Boss (Umetarō Katsura)
• Gajirō Satō as Genkō
• Chishū Ryū
  Chishu Ryu
  was a famous Japanese film actor, a favourite of the director Yasujiro Ozu. From 1928 to 1992 he appeared in at least 155 films, including Ozu's Tokyo Story and Yoshitaro Nomura's Castle of Sand...
  
   as Gozen-sama
• Takehiro Murata as Sadao Kikuchi
• Tatsuo Matsumura as Professor Hayashi

Critical appraisal

Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi , born Yasuo Tadokoro , was a Japanese film actor....

 was nominated for the Best Actor prize at the Japan Academy Prize ceremony for his roles in Foster Daddy, Tora! and the following entry in the series, Tora-san's Love in Osaka

Tora-san's Love in Osaka

aka Tora's Many-Splintered Love is a 1981 Japanese comedy film directed by Yoji Yamada. It stars Kiyoshi Atsumi as Torajirō Kuruma , and Keiko Matsuzaka as his love interest or "Madonna". Tora-san's Love in Osaka is the twenty-seventh entry in the popular, long-running Otoko wa Tsurai yo series...

(1981). Stuart Galbraith IV

Stuart Galbraith IV

Stuart Galbraith IV is an American cinema historian, film critic, and DVD special features producer, essayist, and audio commentator.-Early life and education:...

 writes that Foster Daddy, Tora! is one of the top films in the Otoko wa Tsurai yo

Otoko wa Tsurai yo

Otoko wa tsurai yo is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as "Tora-san" , a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as "Tora-san" by its fans...

series, and "like the best entries, both funny and sweet". The German-language site molodezhnaja gives Foster Daddy, Tora! three and a half out of five stars.

Availability

Foster Daddy, Tora! was released theatrically on December 27, 1980. In Japan, the film has been released on videotape in 1996, and in DVD format in 1999, 2002, and 2008.

External links

• Foster Daddy, Tora! at www.tora-san.jp (Official site)