{ "id": "ep4eg99k87", "slug": "the-ravine-of-goodbye", "title": "The Ravine of Goodbye", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery", "label": "Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.2010-2014-films", "label": "2010–2014 films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.2010-2014-films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.2010-2014-films.crime-films.alpha-m-to-w", "label": "Titles M to W", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.2010-2014-films.crime-films.alpha-m-to-w" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery", "label": "Asia (other) · 2001 to 2020: Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery", "path": [ { "id": "geo.asia", "label": "Asia (other)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001", "label": "Asia (other) · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery", "label": "Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery" } ] } ], "excerpt": "The Ravine of Goodbye (さよなら渓谷, Sayonara Keikoku) is a 2013 Japanese drama-mystery film by Tatsushi Omori, adapted from Shuichi Yoshida's novel, starring Yoko Maki and Shima Onishi; it won the Moscow IFF Special Jury Prize and Japan Academy Best Actress.", "snippet": "The Ravine of Goodbye (さよなら渓谷, Sayonara Keikoku) is a 2013 Japanese drama-mystery film by Tatsushi Omori, adapted from Shuichi Yoshida's novel, starring Yoko Maki and Shima Onishi; it won the Moscow IFF Special Jury Prize and Japan Academy Best Actress.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.2010-2014-films.crime-films.alpha-m-to-w", "markdown": "# The Ravine of Goodbye\n\n**The Ravine of Goodbye** (さよなら渓谷, *Sayonara Keikoku*, literally \"Goodbye Valley\") is a 2013 Japanese drama-mystery film directed by Tatsushi Omori, adapted from Shuichi Yoshida's 2008 novel of the same name. It follows a child murder case in a wooded ravine and the investigation that exposes a hidden bond between the victim's neighbor and his wife: fifteen years earlier, the wife had been the victim of a gang rape committed by the man she now lives with.[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) • [2](https://asianwiki.com/The_Ravine_of_Goodbye)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Japanese title / romaji | さよなら渓谷 / Sayonara Keikoku[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) |\n| Director and screenplay | Tatsushi Omori; screenplay by Ryo Takada and Omori, from Yoshida's novel[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) |\n| Release | June 22, 2013 (Japan); distributed by Phantom Film[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) |\n| Runtime | 117 minutes per the Japanese Film Database; 116 minutes per IMDb and eiga.com[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/) |\n| Principal cast | Yoko Maki (Kanako), Shima Onishi (Shunsuke Ozaki), Nao Omori (Watanabe), Anne Suzuki (Satomi Tachibana)[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) |\n| Major award | Special Jury Prize, Competition, 35th Moscow International Film Festival (2013)[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) |\n| Acting awards | Yoko Maki: Best Actress at the 2013 Hochi Film Awards, 2014 Kinema Junpo Awards, and 37th Japan Academy Prizes[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/awards/) |\n| Age rating | R15+ in Japan[5](https://eiga.com/movie/77717/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nIn a green ravine far from the city, a young child is killed and the mother, Satomi Tachibana, is arrested as the prime suspect. The case appears closed until an anonymous tip reveals that Satomi was having an affair with her next-door neighbor, Shunsuke Ozaki, who then falls under suspicion as an accomplice. The person who reported the affair to the police is Kanako, Ozaki's wife.[2](https://asianwiki.com/The_Ravine_of_Goodbye) • [6](https://wod.wowow.co.jp/watch/173269)\n\nWatanabe, a weekly magazine reporter covering the case, is struck by the couple's life in the ravine, where they live with only the bare necessities as if hiding from something. His investigation uncovers that fifteen years earlier, when Ozaki was a promising college baseball player, he took part in a gang rape, and that the victim in that case was Kanako, the woman who is now his wife.[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) • [2](https://asianwiki.com/The_Ravine_of_Goodbye) • [7](https://japansociety.org/events/the-ravine-of-goodbye/) The film's central question is what binds a victim and a perpetrator who choose to live together, and whether atonement hidden from public view can count as atonement at all.[8](https://www.flixist.com/japan-cuts-review-the-ravine-of-goodbye/)\n\n## Production and source novel\n\nThe film adapts Yoshida Shuichi's novel *Sayonara Keikoku*, published in June 2008 by Shinchosha Publishing after serialization in *Weekly Shinkancho* (週刊新潮). Yoshida has said the story grew out of a real case and a photograph of a female suspect surrounded by a wall of large, intimidating male reporters before her arrest; he wanted to write the physical fear a woman would feel in that situation. The novel's ravine setting is based on Okutama, in western Tokyo.[9](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/128754/)\n\nDirector Tatsushi Omori, whose 2005 debut *The Whispering of the Gods* had already drawn acclaim abroad, had built a career on films about violence and the outer limits of human behavior. He co-wrote the screenplay with Ryo Takada. Nao Omori, who plays the reporter Watanabe, is the director's younger brother.[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) • [10](https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2013/06/21/films/film-reviews/sayonara-keikoku-the-ravine-of-goodbye/) • [5](https://eiga.com/movie/77717/)\n\nThe ending theme, \"Sakiwazaka\" (幸先坂), was written and composed by musician Shiina Ringo and sung by the lead actress, Yoko Maki.[5](https://eiga.com/movie/77717/)\n\n## Reception and awards\n\nAt the [35th Moscow International Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/35th-moscow-international-film-festival) in 2013 the film competed for the Golden St. George and won the Special Jury Prize, along with a Special Mention from the Russian Film Critics. Japanese trade commentary noted it was the first Japanese award at Moscow since [Takeshi Kitano](https://www.edgepedia.org/takeshi-kitano)'s special award in 2008.[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/awards/) • [11](https://www.show-hey-cinema.com/library/5e157a5dbd16fed77998ba70/5e7f9d87299e20db16222eaa.pdf)\n\nYoko Maki's performance as Kanako, built on suppressed emotion rather than outward display, earned Best Actress honors at the Hochi Film Awards (2013), the Kinema Junpo Awards (2014, shared across her roles in other films), and the 37th Japan Academy Prizes (2014). The film was also nominated for the Kinema Junpo Best Film award.[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/awards/)\n\nThe film screened internationally at the 2013 Vancouver International Film Festival (Dragons & Tigers program, its Canadian premiere), the Japan Society's JAPAN CUTS in New York (its North American premiere, July 2013), and the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival's World Panorama section.[1](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788) • [2](https://asianwiki.com/The_Ravine_of_Goodbye) • [7](https://japansociety.org/events/the-ravine-of-goodbye/) It was released theatrically in Taiwan on March 21, 2014 under the title 再見溪谷.[12](https://www.wowscreen.com.tw/movie.php?movie_id=13869)\n\nCritical response was divided on execution rather than subject. Reviewers consistently singled out Maki's performance and the film's refusal to reduce its characters to a simple victim-and-perpetrator schema; the Flixist review called the Ozaki-Kanako relationship one of the most interesting screen relationships in years while criticizing the journalist subplot as an unnecessary second protagonist thread.[8](https://www.flixist.com/japan-cuts-review-the-ravine-of-goodbye/) On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 69% Tomatometer from a single counted review, and IMDb users rate it 6.7/10.[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sayonara_keikoku) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/) A scholarly textual analysis in *New Voices in Japanese Studies* examined the film alongside *DV: Domestic Violence* (2005) as an example of how narrative and cinematographic technique can lead viewers to reflect on their attitudes toward rape and rape victims.[14](https://newvoices.org.au/newvoices/media/JPF-New-Voices-in-Japanese-Studies-Vol-8.pdf)\n\n## Home media\n\nKing Records released the film on Blu-ray and DVD in Japan on January 10, 2024 as part of its budget Japanese-cinema line, priced at ¥2,750 (Blu-ray) and ¥1,755 (DVD) including tax.[15](https://www.kingrecords.co.jp/cs/g/gKIXF-1698/) • [16](https://dist.joshinweb.jp/dps/art/310444.html)\n\n## References\n\n1. [The Ravine Of Goodbye, Japanese Film Database (JFDB)](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/3788)\n2. [The Ravine of Goodbye, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/The_Ravine_of_Goodbye)\n3. [The Ravine of Goodbye (2013), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/)\n4. [Sayonara keikoku (2013) – Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2487684/awards/)\n5. [さよなら渓谷, 映画.com](https://eiga.com/movie/77717/)\n6. [さよなら渓谷, WOWOWオンデマンド](https://wod.wowow.co.jp/watch/173269)\n7. [The Ravine of Goodbye, Japan Society](https://japansociety.org/events/the-ravine-of-goodbye/)\n8. [Japan Cuts Review: The Ravine of Goodbye, Flixist](https://www.flixist.com/japan-cuts-review-the-ravine-of-goodbye/)\n9. [『さよなら渓谷』吉田修一, 新潮社](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/128754/)\n10. ['Sayonara Keikoku (The Ravine of Goodbye)', The Japan Times](https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2013/06/21/films/film-reviews/sayonara-keikoku-the-ravine-of-goodbye/)\n11. [シネ・リー映画ライブラリー (PDF)](https://www.show-hey-cinema.com/library/5e157a5dbd16fed77998ba70/5e7f9d87299e20db16222eaa.pdf)\n12. [再見溪谷 The Ravine Of Goodbye, WOW!SCREEN](https://www.wowscreen.com.tw/movie.php?movie_id=13869)\n13. [The Ravine of Goodbye, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sayonara_keikoku)\n14. [New Voices in Japanese Studies, Volume 8](https://newvoices.org.au/newvoices/media/JPF-New-Voices-in-Japanese-Studies-Vol-8.pdf)\n15. [さよなら渓谷 Blu-ray, キングレコード](https://www.kingrecords.co.jp/cs/g/gKIXF-1698/)\n16. [さよなら渓谷 Blu-ray/DVD, ジョーシン](https://dist.joshinweb.jp/dps/art/310444.html)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works) › 2010–2014 films › Titles M to W*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"The Ravine of Goodbye\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[The Ravine of Goodbye](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"The Ravine of Goodbye\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ravine-of-goodbye. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "The Ravine of Goodbye is a 2013 Japanese drama-mystery film by Tatsushi Omori, adapted from Shuichi Yoshida's novel, starring Yoko Maki and Shima Onishi; it won the Moscow IFF Special Jury Prize and Japan Academy Best Actress." }