Rickshaw Man (無法松の一生, Muhōmatsu no isshō, "The Life of Wild Matsu"), also released as Muhomatsu, the Rickshaw Man or The Rikisha-Man, is a 1958 color Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki.[1] It is a remake of his own 1943 film. In the 1943 version Tsumasaburo Bando played the role of Muhōmatsu.[2] In October 2020, a digitally re-mastered 83 minute long version of the original black-and-white film in 4K quality was released in Tokyo at the Tokyo International Film Festival,[3] with a Blu-ray disc going on sale on 26 March 2021.
Set in Japan during the late 19th century up to the early 20th century, it tells the story of Matsugoro, a rickshaw man played by Toshiro Mifune, who becomes a surrogate father to the child of a recently widowed woman played by Hideko Takamine.[4][5][6]
Director Hiroshi Inagaki won the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival in 1958.
A manga based on Rickshaw Man was published by Shueisha and serialized in the Weekly Shōnen Jump.