Onibaba

"The most daring film import ever...From Japan!"

1964 1h 45m JA

🙌

7.7

BANGER

★7.7TMDB · 505

Horror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

While her son, Kichi, is away at war, a woman and her daughter-in-law survive by killing samurai who stray into their swamp, then selling whatever valuables they find. Both are devastated when they learn that Kichi has died, but his wife soon begins an affair with a neighbor who survived the war, Hachi. The mother disapproves and, when she can't steal Hachi for herself, tries to scare her daughter-in-law with a mysterious mask from a dead samurai.

“The most daring film import ever...From Japan!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

HBO Max Amazon ChannelSubscription

HBO MaxSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Nobuko Otowa
Woman
Jitsuko Yoshimura
Young Woman
Kei Satō
Hachi
Jūkichi Uno
The Samurai
Taiji Tonoyama
Ushi
Someshō Matsumoto
Runaway Warrior
Kentarô Kaji
Runaway Warrior
Fudeko Tanaka
Old Woman

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Kaneto Shindō
Writers: Kaneto Shindō
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

62 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Kaneto Shindō, shot by Kiyomi Kuroda. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Hikaru Hayashi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Toshio Enoki shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Nobuko Otowa and Jitsuko Yoshimura and Kei Satō carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The most daring film import ever...From Japan!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0058430 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Kaneto Shindō directs. Kiyomi Kuroda behind the camera. Hikaru Hayashi scores. Toshio Enoki cuts. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

162 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Kaneto Shindō, shot by Kiyomi Kuroda. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Hikaru Hayashi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Toshio Enoki shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Nobuko Otowa and Jitsuko Yoshimura and Kei Satō carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "The most daring film import ever...From Japan!".
7IMDB entry: tt0058430 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 13 themes, including "japan", "samurai", "jealousy", "desertion".
9Released under 13 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Kiyomi Kuroda
Original score: Hikaru Hayashi
Editing: Toshio Enoki
Makeup / hair: Kaneyasu Masuda
Sound: Tetsuya Ohashi
Runtime: 105 min · 1h 45m
Status: Released
Original language: JA
IMDB: Onibaba (1964)

Also by

Kaneto Shindō

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

deepkino2026-01-14
★ 7/10
In the grip of war and famine, a makeshift hut amid the reeds, and two women—one waiting for her son, the other for her husband. So far, everything is as it is in other ordinary drama films. However, when the man of the house's friend returns from the war and tells them he died in battle, and especially when the young widow begins to meet with the person who returned from the war alive, things change.

Production companies