Japan Synopsis
Восточная элегия
A surreal journey of a displaced spirit as he wanders in the interminable darkness through the temporal landscape of a quaint and isolated feudal-era fishing village. Guided by a series of faintly illuminated rooms, the wandering spirit comes upon ancient souls who take on physical forms as they recount their personal stories of daily existence, loss, and tragedy in the peasant community. Intrigued by his initial visit to a curiously distracted elderly woman, the spirit returns to her home in order to ask a fundamental question – "What is happiness?" – an existential query that is innocently answered with innate humility and accepted unknowingness.
Other Titles From NHK
The 1995–1997 Japan Window
In the crowded 1995-1997 Japan release window, Oriental Elegy sits at #101 of 142. The leaderboard below contextualises its neighbours.
The 1990s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year across the 1990s in Japan, 447 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Oriental Elegy premiered alongside 42 others.
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 42 other Japan films in 1996.
The 1069th Japan title from Japan we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1899).
Our Japan catalog contains 4,579 titles in total (2,908 films).
Audience Engagement
11 audience reviews — more than 11% of Japan films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 1th percentile among Japan films.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #3,215 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (30th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -0.4 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Drama productions specifically: #1,409 of 1,933 (top 73%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| All Production Countries | Japan, Russia |
| Original Language | Ru |
| Spoken Languages | Japanese, Russian |
| Production Companies | NHK, Severny Fond, Lenfilm |
| Runtime | 43m |
| Release Date | April 26, 1996 |
| IMDb | tt0122467 |