Cinematic Point Of View

Soundtrack Spotlight: Poppoya / Railroad Man Theme | Ryuichi Sakamoto

January 28, 2025

1–2 minutes

family, fatherhood, Film Music, Films, Japan, Japanese cinema, Japanese Movies, Ken Takakura, Poppoya, Railroad Man, Ryoko Hirosue, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Soundtrack

I have not yet seen the 1999 film Railroad Man (Poppoya) but I ran across the soundtrack, in particular this beautiful music.

The film stars Ken Takakura and tells the story of an elderly railroad-station manager grappling feelings of regret due to his commitment to work over the years, at the expense of his personal relationships.

This song and this music video really hit me in the feels. The warmth of a train station in the rural snowy Japanese countryside. A dedicated father. Watching your kids grow up so fast. Dang, my 50’s are making me really sentimental.

I located a DVD copy of the film and am looking forward to watching it.

In the meantime, I wanted to share this emotional, haunting theme song by Ryoko Hirosue and Ryuichi Sakamoto.