Tora-san’s Dream of Spring

Otoko wa tsurai yo (“It’s tough being a man”) is a long-running and beloved Japanese film series that spanned from 1969 to 1995 and starred Kiyoshi Atsumi as Kuruma Torajirou, or simply “Tora-san,” a kind-hearted travelling salesman who is always unlucky in love. Each film featured a different leading lady/damsel in distress, called a Madonna, and a different region of Japan. The film series ended due Atsumi’s declining health and eventual death from lung cancer at the age of 68 without Tora-san ever settling down and finding domestic happiness.
In this 24th installment, Tora-san returns to his family’s home in Shibamata, Tokyo, to find an American salesman Michael Jordan (Herb Edelman) living there, leading to various conflicts. As Tora-san struggles with his love for the local Madonna named Sakura (Chieko Baishou), Michael admits that he is also falling for her. Ultimately, the two men find they have more in common than they thought.