Kagemusha
影武者
“The Shadow of a man can never stand up and walk on its own.”
Synopsis
A feudal epic presenting the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. The impostor becomes comfortable living his life among nobility, but his responsibilities to his station grow more demanding the longer he occupies it.
Trailers, Teasers & Extra Featurettes
Official promotional previews, behind-the-scenes footage, and exclusive clips.
Kagemusha (1980) Original Trailer [4K]
Type: Trailer • Published 2023-06-30
Top Cast
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Tatsuya Nakadai
Shingen Takeda / Kagemusha
Tsutomu Yamazaki
Nobukado Takeda
Kenichi Hagiwara
Katsuyori Takeda
Jinpachi Nezu
Sohachiro Tsuchiya
Hideji Ōtaki
Masakage Yamagata
Daisuke Ryū
Nobunaga Oda
Masayuki Yui
Ieyasu Tokugawa
Kaori Momoi
Otsuyanokata
Mitsuko Baisho
Oyunokata
Hideo Murota
Nobufusa Baba
Takayuki Shiho
Masatoyo Naito
Kōji Shimizu
Katsusuke Atobe
Daikei Shimizu
Masatane Hara
Sen Yamamoto
Nobushige Oyamada
Shuhei Sugimori
Masanobu Kosaka
Kota Yui
Takemaru
Yasuhito Yamanaka
Ranmaru Mori
Kumeko Otowa
Takemaru's Nurse
Release History & Theatrical Window
BFI London Film Festival
Festival / Special Debut
October 10, 1980
Wide Cinema Exhibition
January 1, 1981
Physical Home Media
Financials & Box Office Performance
Production Budget
$6M
Filming & production cost
Worldwide Gross
$4M
Total global ticket sales
Box Office Return
0.67x
-$2M deficit
Theatrical Status
Budget Return
Box office tier
Key Information & Fast Facts
- Director
- Akira Kurosawa
- Screenplay & Story
- Akira Kurosawa, Masato Ide
- Original Score
- Shinichiro Ikebe
- Original Title
- 影武者
- Country of Origin
- Japan, United States of America
- Spoken Languages
- Japanese
- Runtime
- 3h 0m
- Production Budget
- $6M
- Worldwide Gross
- $4M
- Production Studios
- TOHO, 20th Century Fox, Kurosawa Production
Creative Leadership & Key Crew
Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa, Masato Ide
Shinichiro Ikebe
Takao Saitō, Shoji Ueda
Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa, Tomoyuki Tanaka, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas
Department Leadership Roster
Akira Kurosawa
Director
Akira Kurosawa
Screenplay
Akira Kurosawa
Producer
Shinichiro Ikebe
Original Music Composer
Takao Saitō
Director of Photography
Shoji Ueda
Director of Photography
Masato Ide
Screenplay
Seiichiro Hagakusawa
Costume Design
Akira Kurosawa
Editor
Age Classification & Content Advisories
Official viewer rating standards and content warnings across international classification boards.
PG: Parental Guidance Suggested — May contain mild violence or suggestive material.
International Certification Matrix
FSK 12 — Restricted to viewers aged 12 and older.
Tous publics — Universal audience.
Parental Guidance — Unlikely to upset children 8 and older.
Parental Guidance Suggested — May contain mild violence or suggestive material.
Production Stills & Gallery
Official cinematic photography and background stills for Kagemusha.
Featured In Curated Collections
Editorial lists, community rankings, and cinematic collections featuring Kagemusha.
Asian Cinema
Auto-generated by festival-lists — do not edit by hand.
Movie Collection
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Letterboxd's Top 500 Films
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TSPDT - 1000 Greatest Films
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? (TSPDT) - The 1,000 Greatest Films. A definitive meta-list aggregating thousands of critics' polls, historical rankings, and director top 10s to represent the ultimate critical consensus in cinema history. TSPDT 影史最伟大的1000部电影： 全球最权威的电影元榜单，由该网站汇总世界各大电影刊物历史评选结果及数千名影评人、学者的个人十佳榜单，通过算法加权计算得出的终极共识。 *片单说明：* 本片单只收录纯电影，以下剧集或迷你剧不予收录： • [#335] Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) • [#514] Twin Peaks: The Return (2017) • [#614] Edvard Munch (1974) • [#703] The Sorrow and the Pity (1969) • [#890] Elephant (1989) • [#925] Heimat (1984) • [#968] Doomed Love (1978) 以下作品在 TMDB 被拆分为多个独立电影条目；本片单按作品/章节顺序连续收录，且每个分拆条目均沿用同一 TSPDT 名次： • [#171] Dekalog (1989) — 展开为 10 部电影 • [#988] Olympia (1938) — 展开为 2 部电影 *(Updated via Automated ETL Pipeline: 2026-10-18 07:30:01 UTC+8)*
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Frequently Asked Questions About Kagemusha
Quick factual answers about cast, synopsis, director, box office, and release information.
What is Kagemusha about?
A feudal epic presenting the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. The impostor becomes comfortable living his life among nobility, but his responsibilities to his station grow more demanding the longer he occupies it.
Who directed Kagemusha?
Kagemusha was directed by Akira Kurosawa.
Who stars in Kagemusha?
The principal cast of Kagemusha includes Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kenichi Hagiwara, Jinpachi Nezu, Hideji Ōtaki.
When was Kagemusha released and how long is it?
Kagemusha was released in 1980 with a total runtime of 3h 0m.
What was the box office and production budget of Kagemusha?
Kagemusha had a reported production budget of $6M and grossed $4M at the worldwide box office (0.67 return on budget, classified as a underperformed).
Who composed the musical score for Kagemusha?
The original motion picture soundtrack for Kagemusha was composed by Shinichiro Ikebe.
What is the age rating and content advisory for Kagemusha?
Kagemusha holds official age classifications: DE: 12 (FSK 12 — Restricted to viewers aged 12 and older.); FR: U (Tous publics — Universal audience.); GB: PG (Parental Guidance — Unlikely to upset children 8 and older.); US: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested — May contain mild violence or suggestive material.).