The Magic Ballad

The Magic Ballad

1982•26m•5.2/10

Animation

Ratings

🎬TMDb

5.2/10(4)

The 25 minute film tells the tale of an ailing elderly woman named Itako who encounters a fox named Okon. The story opens with Itako lying bedridden, as she has for a long time. Okon enters her home and Itako tells the fox that he is welcome to take anything that he wants, for she has no use for anything anymore. Okon is delighted and in order to return the favour (the act of ongaeshi), Okon performs a magic jyōruri (a ballad with shamisen accompaniment) that heals Itako so that she is fit enough to walk again. Everyone is surprised by Itako's sudden recovery. She then hears of a hunter who has been badly injured and is near death. Itako hides Okon in the back of her shirt and has the fox sing the song while she plays shamisen in order to heal the man. This act of kindness is repeated for others until Itako's good fortune leads some to be suspicious of her.

Open in PickFlick

Language

JA

Status

Released

Release Date

Cast

Teruko Nagaoka

Teruko Nagaoka

Tetsuo Goto

Tetsuo Goto

Recommended

The Pied Piper

The Pied Piper

The people of Hamelin, overrun with rats, offer a bag of gold to anyone who can get rid of the rats. A piper offers to do the job, and successfully lures the rats into a mirage of cheese, which disappears. The citizens, disappointed that all he did was play a tune, offer only pocket change. The piper, angered, plays a new tune that has all the children of the city follow him, even the new twins the stork is preparing to deliver.

The Pied Piper

1933

6.5

The House

The House

Across different eras, a poor family, an anxious developer and a fed-up landlady become tied to the same mysterious house in this animated dark comedy.

The House

2022

7.0

Yo-kai Watch: The Movie - The Great Adventure of the Flying Whale & the Double World, Meow!

Yo-kai Watch: The Movie - The Great Adventure of the Flying Whale & the Double World, Meow!

A giant whale appears and flies above Sakura New Town. With the whale’s sound of crying, some changes occur to Kenta Amano and Yokai.

Yo-kai Watch: The Movie - The Great Adventure of the Flying Whale & the Double World, Meow!

2016

7.2

Stopmotion

Stopmotion

Ella Blake, a stop-motion animator struggling to control her demons after the loss of her overbearing mother, embarks upon the creation of a film that becomes the battleground for her sanity. As Ella’s mind starts to fracture, the characters in her project take on a life of their own.

Stopmotion

2024

6.2

Naruto OVA 9: Chunin Exam on Fire! and Naruto vs. Konohamaru!

Naruto OVA 9: Chunin Exam on Fire! and Naruto vs. Konohamaru!

Naruto faces off against his old pupil Konohamaru in a tournament during the chuunin entrance exams.

Naruto OVA 9: Chunin Exam on Fire! and Naruto vs. Konohamaru!

2011

7.3

Once Upon a Studio

Once Upon a Studio

Created for Disney's 100th anniversary, the short features Mickey Mouse corralling a gallery of legendary Disney characters for a group photo.

Once Upon a Studio

2023

8.3

Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five

Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five

Ordered to teach a martial arts class of rambunctious bunny kittens, Po tells stories of each of the Furious Five's pasts.

Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five

2008

6.8

Short Peace

Short Peace

A traveler is confronted by spirits in an abandoned shrine; a story of honor and firefighting in ancient Japan; a white bear defends the royal family from a monstrous red demon; ragtag soldiers battle a robotic force in futuristic Japan.

Short Peace

2013

6.4

Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo mesmerizes the people in his village with his magical gift for spinning wild tales with origami. When he accidentally summons an evil spirit seeking vengeance, Kubo is forced to go on a quest to solve the mystery of his fallen samurai father and his mystical weaponry, as well as discover his own magical powers.

Kubo and the Two Strings

2016

7.6

Sing: Thriller

Sing: Thriller

Buster Moon dreams up a star-studded spectacle set to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in this animated short featuring characters from the hit "Sing" films.

Sing: Thriller

2024

7.2

DC Showcase: The Phantom Stranger

DC Showcase: The Phantom Stranger

Jess joins her friends at a party in a dilapidated mansion hosted by the mysterious Seth. When odd things begin to happen to Jess and her friends, the Phantom Stranger intervenes to save her from a dreary fate.

DC Showcase: The Phantom Stranger

2020

6.7

Pokémon: Pikachu's Rescue Adventure

Pokémon: Pikachu's Rescue Adventure

One day, Pikachu and its friends are walking along when they suddenly fall through a Diglett hole and into Pokémon Valley, a secret location that no one knows about. Pikachu and its buddies tell the Pokémon that they could use some help looking for Togepi, who fell through the hole first. The group sets off and eventually finds Togepi in the Exeggcute nest—but one of the Exeggcute is missing. That leads the group on another hunt; this time, though, Pikachu and its friends come back to the nest empty-handed. That’s when a storm begins to brew, filling Pokémon valley with roaring thunder and gusts of wind that almost blow the friends—and the Exeggcute nest—away! Are the friends going to be able to keep the nest safe and reunite the Exeggcute?

Pokémon: Pikachu's Rescue Adventure

1999

6.2

Similar Movies

Revenger

Revenger

A film about an unhappy man who catches his wife with a lover. He leaves to buy a gun, while plotting to kill the wife and the lover. Based on a short story by Anton Chekhov.

Revenger

1958

3.5

Dieci Cadute

Dieci Cadute

An underground fight is taking place in a painter's studio between the artist and the ten tyrants.

Dieci Cadute

2012

Piggy

Piggy

On a farm in 1933, a piglet is sold to a family in Copenhagen. Piggy is a pig with greater appetite than brain and does not know that the good food he gets will turn him to the main dish of Christmas Eve. When the freedom fighter Monty appears, he explains it to Piggy. Together they plan their great escape.

Piggy

2012

4.0

Sausage

Sausage

Topical issues of food ethics are played out in the simple but compelling tale of two artisan stallholders. Their idyllic market square is invaded by a slick fast-food vendor, set to steal all their customers. What new methods must these traditional providers invent to battle for their livelihoods?

Sausage

2013

4.0

ParaNorman: The Thrifting

ParaNorman: The Thrifting

When Norman, Courtney, and Neil stumble into a creepy curiosity shop, paranormal chaos ensues...

ParaNorman: The Thrifting

2025

7.6

Chrysanthemum Garden

Chrysanthemum Garden

On the motives of Chinese legends. For adults.

Chrysanthemum Garden

1986

Beetle, Ship, Apricot

Beetle, Ship, Apricot

The story is about two city boys who spent their summer holidays in a village where everything is so unusual and new. Here all the wildlife is at a glance: both large and small beetles, which can sometimes land right in the soup, and a real turtle that hides in its house from danger, and an apricot that gives ripe fruits similar to a small sun. And there is also an interesting place — the attic, where you can find a lot of old things. But soon the summer will end and mom will take the children back to the city...

Beetle, Ship, Apricot

2004

7.0

Camilla

Camilla

No overview available.

Camilla

2008

7.0

Us Again

Us Again

In a vibrant city pulsating with rhythm and movement, an elderly man and his young-at-heart wife rekindle their youthful passion for life and each other on one magical night.

Us Again

2021

7.8

Gavora

Gavora

Psychedelic animation that impresses with eyeballs and other motifs.

Gavora

1989

SPIN

SPIN

A tense abstract animation with delicate line drawing. Contemporary musician Nakamura Shigenobu is in charge of the music used in the work.

SPIN

1993

Crow

Crow

It is a monster work that depicts a disturbing air by drawing a scene with the crow as a motif and the scenery of Kyoto in parallel with a frame shot.

Crow

1992

PickFlick Assistant

Hi! I'm your PickFlick Assistant. Ask me about movies, TV shows, IPTV sources, or anything about PickFlick.

Powered by CopilotKit