Directed by Yasujiro Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, Sanma no aji (An Autumn Afternoon) is the story of a family patriarch who is aware that his time is coming as he devotes his final moments by arranging a marriage for his daughter in the hope she can have a future. Ozu’s final film of his illustrious career is an exploration of modernism and a man keeping hold on tradition as he is aware that he has to let his daughter go and have a life of her own while hoping she retains his values. Starring Chishu Ryu, Shima Iwashita, Keiji Sada, Mariko Okada, Teruo Yoshida, Shinichiro Mikami, and Eijiro Tono. Sanma no aji is a ravishing and touching film from Yasujiro Ozu.
The film follows a widower who is aware that he’s in the final years of his life where he decides that it is time for his daughter to find a husband after seeing a mentor of his drunkenly reveal his own regrets in life. It’s a film with a simple premise by writers Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda as it’s also about a family growing and adjusting to the changes in their lives. Notably in Shuhei Hirayama (Chishu Ryu) who works at a nearby factory in an office while he shares his home with his youngest son Kazuo (Shinichiro Mikami) and his 24-year old daughter Michiko (Shima Iwashita). His eldest son Koichi (Keiji Sada) is already married to Akiko (Mariko Okada) as they’re living their own lives while they endure a few problems of their own as Koichi is given some used golf clubs at a bargain price that Akiko disapproves of. Yet, Shuhei is concerned about trying to find a husband for Michiko during a night out with friends along with their old teacher of Chinese classics in Sakuma (Eijiro Tono) that would spur Shuhei to make plans for the future after seeing Sakuma extremely drunk as well as how his daughter Tomoko (Haruko Sugimura) reacts to her father.
Ozu’s direction which doesn’t aim for anything stylized or flashy does play into the simplicity of the story. Notably with his stationary static shot where he never moves the camera at all just to get enough coverage of what is happening during the course of the film. Shot on location in Tokyo, Ozu does use some wide shots of the location but also some precise compositions of the factories as well as certain locations including a bar that Shuhei goes to often as well as sushi restaurants. Ozu doesn’t use any close-ups in favor of just simplistic medium shots where the camera is often in front of the actor to talk to another actor or in a shot where there’s more than one character in a frame. Ozu would also play into this sense of loss but also acceptance of a new world in a scene at a bar that Shuhei goes to where he meets a sailor from his past in Yoshitaro Sakamoto (Daisuke Kato) who reminisces with him about the war and muse about what happened if Japan had won.
While there are elements of humor in the film, there is also this air of melancholia that Ozu would use throughout the film as it relates to what is the end of something. Notably as Shuhei saw what happened to Sakuma and how far he’s fallen with little to show for in the end just as he and a couple of his friends have done well. Shuhei realizes what he must do for Michiko as it’s not just about the acceptance that he’ll have to do things by himself once Michiko and Kazuo leave for their own lives. It’s also about Michiko needing to let go of taking care of her father though she admits to be unsure about wanting to get married. The film’s final images is about that acceptance but also the end of something as it relates to Shuhei yet Ozu manages to maintain a semblance of dignity knowing that even though a man’s life is to end. It at least has created a new beginning for those who are important to him. Overall, Ozu crafts a rapturous and intoxicating film about a man trying to find a suitable husband for his daughter.
Cinematographer Yuharu Atsuta does incredible work with the film’s colorful cinematography with its emphasis on naturalistic lighting for many of the daytime scenes while using low-key lights from Kenzo Ishiwatari for some of the interior/exterior scenes at night including the bar that Shuhei goes to. Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura does excellent work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with a few rhythmic cuts to play into the conversation scenes. Art directors Tatsuo Hamada and Shigeo Ogiwara do brilliant work with the look of the sushi restaurant and the bar that Shuhei goes to as well as the noodle shop that Sakuma runs and Shuhei’s home.
Costume designer Yuji Nagashima does fantastic work with the costumes as it is largey straightforward with the suits the men wear and the modern clothes of the time that the women wear along with traditional Japanese robes. Sound editor Ichiro Ishii does superb work with the sound as it is largely straightforward as it play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as the sounds of television showing baseball games. The film’s music by Kojun Saito is amazing for its lush and somber orchestral score with its usage of strings that sweep into its arrangements to play up the melancholic tone of the film while music coordinator Takanobu Saito provide a few traditional pieces as well as a war march piece that play into Shuhei’s fondness for his military past.
The film’s wonderful ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from Fujio Suga and Zen’ichi Inagawa as a couple of drunks that Shuhei talks to at the bar, Shinobu Asaji as Shuhei’s secretary, Toyo Takahashi as the waitress at the sushi restaurant, Daisuke Kato as a former sailor in Yoshitaro Sakamoto that Shuhei remembered and chatted with at the bar, Ryuji Kita as an old friend of Shuhei in Shin Horie, Michiyo Kan as Horie’s young wife Tamako, Nobuo Nakamura and Kuniko Miyake in their respective roles as family friends Shuzo and Nobuko Kawai, and Kyoko Kushida as the bar proprietor whom Shuhei believes looks like his late wife. Eijiro Tono is superb as Shuhei’s former Naval mentor Seitaro Sukuma as a man who has fallen on hard times and is coping with his own failures while Haruko Sugimura is terrific as his daughter Tomoko as a middle-aged woman running a low-level noodle shop that is struggling as she copes with missed opportunities for herself. Shinichiro Mikami is fantastic as Shuhei’s 21-year old son Kazuo who works nearby at a factory as he is more concerned about what is for dinner rather than do something for himself. Teruo Yoshida is excellent as Yukata Miura as a friend of Koichi who gives Koichi some golf clubs while also having interest towards Michiko despite being attached to another woman.
Mariko Okada is brilliant as Koichi’s wife Akiko who is concerned with the money that Koichi spends knowing that they need it for more important things while Keiji Sada is amazing as Koichi as a man trying to live his own life and help his father find a husband for Michiko despite his own shortcomings in spending money he doesn’t have. Shima Iwashita is incredible as Michiko as a young woman in her 20s who is reluctant about getting married as she runs the household but also worries about what her father will do when she leaves and he’s on his own. Finally, there’s Chishu Ryu in a phenomenal performance as Shuhei Hirayama as a man knowing that he is facing the final years of his life as he also thinks about his past and his daughter’s future knowing what will happen to her if she stays home where it is a performance of grace and sensitivity as a man who has accepted his fate but also thinks about the incredible life he’s had.
Sanma no aji is an outstanding film from Yasujiro Ozu that features a tremendous performance from Chishu Ryu. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous images, a potent music score, and touching themes of life and family. It is a film that is a family drama that is told with such restraint and tenderness as well as being a great final film from one of cinema’s great storytellers. In the end, Sanma no aji is a magnificent film from Yasujiro Ozu.
Yasujiro Ozu Films: (Sword of Penitence) – (Days of Youth) – Tokyo Chorus - I Was Born, But... - (Dragnet Girl) – Passing Fancy - (A Mother Should Be Loved) – A Story of Floating Weeds - (An Inn in Tokyo) – (The Only Son) – (What Did the Lady Forget?) – (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family) – (There Was a Father) – Record of a Tenement Gentleman - (A Hen in the Wind) – Late Spring - Early Summer - (The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice) – Tokyo Story - Early Spring - Tokyo Twilight - (Equinox Flower) – Good Morning - Floating Weeds - Late Autumn - The End of Summer
© thevoid99 2019
Directed by Yasujiro Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, Kohayagawa-ke no aki (The End of Summer) is the story of a sake brewery family whose lives are shattered by discoveries relating to their patriarch and his secret life with a mistress. The film is a comedy-drama that relates to a family where a group of women deal with the news about their father while they try to adjust to the changes relating to their sake brewery. Starring Ganjiro Nakamura, Setsuko Hara, Yoko Tsukasa, Michiyo Aratama, Keiju Kobayashi, Masahiko Shimazu, Daisuke Kato, Haruko Sugimura, Hisaya Morishige, Chieko Naniwa, Reiko Dan, and Chishu Ryu. Kohayagawa-ke no aki is an evocative and somber film from Yasujiro Ozu.
The film follows a family who run a small sake brewery that is dealing with bigger companies as two women both deal with potential suitors recommended by their family patriarch who has just renewed his relationship with his old mistress. It’s a film that play into a family dealing with changes during a summer as a family patriarch is trying to ensure that his two daughters be wed to men while his widowed daughter-in-law Akiko (Setsuko Hara) is raising her child alone as she has little interest in getting remarried. With his son-in-law Hisao (Keiju Kobayashi) trying to run the brewery that is competing with a bigger sake competitor, the patriarch Kohayagawa Manbei (Ganjiro Nakamura) spends much of his time at home and would sneak out to visit his old mistress Sasaki Tsune (Chieko Naniwa) whom he’s rekindled a relationship with since the passing of his wife.
The film’s script by Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda play into these family relationships where Akiko is being pursued as is the youngest daughter Noriko (Yoko Tsukasa) as the latter is concerned about her own suitor just as she is interested in a lecturer. It play into the different directions of the family as Noriko’s older sister Fumiko (Michiyo Aratama) learns about her father renewing his relationship with Sasaki as it is believed that he also fathered Sasaki’s daughter Yuriko (Reiko Dan) whom his family hadn’t met. The script also play into this idea of death as it relates to Manbei as he is aware that his brewery might go out of his business as he also thinks about what will happen to his daughters and daughter-in-law.
Ozu’s direction is understated in terms of the simplicity that he maintains throughout the course of the film. Shot largely in Kyoto, the film does play into this world that shows Japan becoming modernized and more vibrant but also retaining elements of the past including some of its traditions. While there aren’t many close-ups in the film, Ozu’s direction is ravishing in his approach to simple compositions whether it’s in a wide or in a medium shot as he captures so much attention to detail on a location, a room, an office, or at a bar. The fact that he doesn’t move the camera at all as well as positioning it one or two feet off the ground which is a visual style that Ozu is known for adds to the simplicity of the film. Even in a wide shot where the camera would look down from a house where Noriko and Akiko are having a conversation at the beachside area of a river as it would then cut to a medium shot of the two on the beachside with Noriko watching her son play in the river.
Ozu would also play up the drama in a low-key approach where he doesn’t aim for melodrama but something that is straightforward but also filled with sadness as it relates to the news about Manbei and his ailing health. The film’s third act doesn’t just explore the idea of mortality but also the decisions a family would have to make as it relates to their business and future. Even as Noriko and Akiko have to find husbands so they won’t be alone and play up to the ideas of tradition though the suitors they’re set-up with don’t really have much to offer to them emotionally. Though the film’s ending is about the end of something, it is also the start of something new where Ozu’s precise framing and gorgeous compositions play into this idea of life and death. Overall, Ozu crafts a rapturous and heartfelt film about a family dealing with changes and their patriarch’s decision to rekindle his relationship with his mistress.
Cinematographer Asakazu Nakai does brilliant work with the film’s colorful cinematography with its gorgeous approach to natural lighting for the scenes set at the day as well as the usage of low-key lighting for some of the scenes set at night. Editor Koichi Iwashita does excellent work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with a few rhythmic cuts to play into some of the conversations between characters. Art director Tomoo Shimogawara does amazing work with the look of the home that Manbei lives in with Fumiko and Hisao as well as the home of Sasaki and the office that Hisao works at. Sound mixer Hisashi Shimonga does nice work with the sound as it is largely straightforward as it includes music that is being played from a certain location as well as sparse and natural sounds of a location. The film’s music by Toshiro Mayuzumi is fantastic for its usage of traditional woodwinds and flutes with some lush string arrangements in some parts of the film as it add to the film’s somber tone.
The film’s superb cast feature some notable small roles from Chishu Ryu and Yuko Mochizuki as a farming couple appearing towards the end of the film commenting on a building, Kyu Sazanka as a clerk working with Hisao, Hisaya Morishige as Akiko’s suitor Isomura, Akira Takadara as the lecturer Teramoto Tadashi whom Noriko is interested in, Haruko Sugimura as a sister-in-law of Manbei in Kato Shige, Daisuke Kato and Haruko Togo in their respective roles as Manbei’s brother-in-law and sister in Kitagawa Yanosuke and Kitagawa Teruko who try to help Akiko find a suitor, Masahiko Shimazu as Hisao and Fumiko’s son Masao, and Reiko Dan as Sasaki’s daughter Yuriko who is more interested in Western culture while wondering if Manbei is really her father. Keiju Kobayashi is terrific as Manbei’s son-in-law Hisao as a man who is trying to keep the family sake brewery afloat knowing that it is futile where he tries to find ways to save it but also face the reality of what he must do. Michiyo Aratama is fantastic as Fumiko as Manbei’s eldest daughter and Hisao’s wife who spends time taking care of her father while being disapproving over his relationship with Sasaki.
Chieko Naniwa is excellent as Sasaki as an old flame of Manbei who is happy about spending time with him while knowing that his family doesn’t know about this new relationship as she agrees to keep it private until the rest of his family is ready to accept her. Yoko Tsukasa is brilliant as Noriko as Manbei’s youngest daughter who deals with the prospect of having to marry someone just as she is falling for a lecturer she’s known for years as she also deals with the idea of being alone. Setsuko Hara is amazing as Akiko as Manbei’s widowed daughter-in-law as a woman that is trying to raise her son but also help Noriko with dealing with the idea of marriage as well as pondering about getting married again. Finally, there’s Ganjiro Nakamura in a remarkable performance as Kohayagawa Manbei as a sake brewery owner who is trying to help figure out what to do for Noriko and Akiko while trying to renew a relationship with a former flame in the hope he can bring the people he love together.
Kohayagawa-ke no aki is a phenomenal film from Yasujiro Ozu. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous visuals, an understated approach to narrative, and themes on life and death. It’s a film that explores a family dealing with secrets but also uncertainty as it relates to the future and their family business as well as themselves. In the end, Kohayagawa-ke no aki is a sensational film from Yasujiro Ozu.
Yasujiro Ozu Films: (Sword of Penitence) – (Days of Youth) – Tokyo Chorus - I Was Born, But... - (Dragnet Girl) – Passing Fancy - (A Mother Should Be Loved) – A Story of Floating Weeds - (An Inn in Tokyo) – (The Only Son) – (What Did the Lady Forget?) – (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family) – (There Was a Father) – Record of a Tenement Gentleman - (A Hen in the Wind) – Late Spring - Early Summer - (The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice) – Tokyo Story - Early Spring - Tokyo Twilight - (Equinox Flower) – Good Morning - Floating Weeds - Late Autumn - An Autumn Afternoon
© thevoid99 2019
Directed by Yasujiro Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, Tokyo Twilight is the story of two sisters who reunite with their mother after she had abandoned them when they were children as they both deal with their own lives. The film is a look into the life of a family as they cope with this sudden reunion as well as changes in their lives. Starring Setsuko Hara, Ineko Arima, Chishu Ryu, Isuzu Yamada, Kamatari Fujiwara, Nobuo Nakamura, and Haruko Sugimura. Tokyo Twilight is an evocative and touching film from Yasujiro Ozu.
The film follows the life of a banker in Tokyo who has two adult daughters as the eldest had just moved in with him with her two-year-old daughter due to her unhappy marriage where she and her younger sister learn that their mother has returned to Tokyo having been presumed dead for years. It’s a family drama that explores a family life that goes into chaos though there are several things the two women in the family are both dealing with as the eldest sister in Takako (Setsuko Hara) is taking care of things at her father’s home while her father Shukichi (Chishu Ryu) continues to work at the bank as he is dealing with the death of a colleague. The script by Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda also explores the private pain that Takako’s younger sister Akiko (Ineko Arima) is dealing with as she is pregnant as her college boyfriend Kenji (Masami Taura) wants nothing to do with her.
During a search to find Kenji, she goes to a mahjong parlor that is run by a woman name Kisako (Isuzu Yamada) where she claims to know Akiko as she doesn’t tell her that she’s her mother. When Shukichi and Takako invite Shukichi’s sister Shigeko (Haruko Sugimura) that she saw Kisako as Takako learned about what Akiko had been doing though she is unaware of Akiko’s pregnancy. The screenplay would show this meeting between Takako and Kisako as it is filled with tension with the former displaying some resentment over what Kisako had done. Yet, it would set the stage for the emotional journey that Akiko would endure not just her own pregnancy but also revelations about the woman at the mahjong parlor she met.
Ozu’s direction is understated as well as being simple in terms of the compositions he creates and the need to delve into anything stylistic. Shot on location in Tokyo, Ozu would devoid himself of camera movements for the film including no tracking shots or anything of movement. Instead, he just aims a simple static shot to play into the image that he presents where he would use some wide shots for some of the locations in and around Tokyo. Yet, much of what Ozu shoots is with medium shots for much of the film as there’s very little close-ups in order to capture the intimacy and interaction between the characters. Much of is to not dwell too much into the melodrama as it would increase by the film’s third act as it relates to the Takako, Akiko, and Kisako. Ozu would maintain his simple approach to visuals as well as know where to create some offbeat shifts in the story that would seem abrupt but also play into the drama. Especially into what would happen as Ozu is aware of the bleakness that is prevalent in the story but is also aware that life has to continue. Overall, Ozu crafts an intoxicating yet tender film about two women dealing with the re-emergence of their estranged mother.
Cinematographer Yuhara Atsuda does brilliant work with the film’s black-and-white photography to capture the beauty of some of the daytime exteriors in Tokyo as well as use some lighting for the interior/exterior scenes at night. Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura does excellent work with the editing as it is very straightforward with very little elements of style for something more direct. Art director Tatsuo Hamada does fantastic work with the look of the home of Shukichi as well as the mahjong parlor that Kisako runs. The sound work of Yoshisaburo Senoo is terrific for being very simple and natural without the need to embellish as it very understated and to-the-point. The film’s music by Takanobu Saito is amazing for its orchestral-based score that feature some somber string arrangements to play into the drama while the music also feature some traditional Japanese music and contemporary music played on location.
The film’s phenomenal cast include some notable small roles from Seiji Miyaguchi as a police officer, Kamatari Fujiwara as a noodle shop owner who lets Akiko drink at his restaurant during the third act, Kinzo Shin as Takako’s estranged husband who visits Shukichi early in the film, Nobuo Nakamura as Kisako’s new husband Sakae Soma, Masami Taura as Akiko’s cruel college boyfriend Kenji, and Haruko Sugimura in a wonderful performance as Shukichi’s sister Shigeko who would tell her brother and niece in her encounter with Kisako. Isuzu Yamada is fantastic as Kisako as Shukichi’s estranged ex-wife Kisako as a woman who has re-emerged in Tokyo with a new life as she recognizes Akiko though doesn’t tell her who she really is as it’s an understated performance that shows a woman trying to start over.
Chishu Ryu is excellent as Shukichi as a banker who is dealing with the death of his family as well as Akiko’s late arrivals at his home wondering what is happening with his family. Ineko Arima is brilliant as Akiko as a young woman trying to deal with an unwanted pregnancy and a troubled relationship with her boyfriend as well as the revelation about the woman she met at a mahjong parlor. Finally, there’s Setsuko Hara in a radiant performance as Takako as a woman who is separated from her husband as she’s trying to run her father’s house and take care of her two-year old daughter while learning about the re-appearance of her mother as she tries to make sure Akiko doesn’t get herself into any trouble as well as getting her mother to not see Akiko ever again.
Tokyo Twilight is an incredible film from Yasujiro Ozu. Featuring a great cast, a compelling story, evocative visuals, and a somber music score, the film is definitely one of Ozu’s finest films in its exploration of family and middle-class life. Especially as it play into two women dealing with the unexpected return of their estranged mother whom they had believed had died. In the end, Tokyo Twilight is a sensational film from Yasujiro Ozu.
Yasujiro Ozu Films: (Sword of Penitence) – (Days of Youth) – Tokyo Chorus - I Was Born, But... - (Dragnet Girl) – Passing Fancy – (A Mother Should Be Loved) – A Story of Floating Weeds - (An Inn in Tokyo) – (The Only Son) – (What Did the Lady Forget?) – (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family) – (There Was a Father) – Record of a Tenement Gentleman - (A Hen in the Wind) – Late Spring - Early Summer - (The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice) – Tokyo Story - Early Spring - (Equinox Flower) – Good Morning - Floating Weeds - Late Autumn - The End of Summer – An Autumn Afternoon
© thevoid99 2017
Directed by Keisuke Kinoshita and screenplay by Tadao Ikeda from a story by Shohei Hino, Army is the story of a Japanese family who hope to be involved in the army to fulfill with the wishes of the generation before them. The film is a look into the legacy of a family as they cope with the ways of the world and what it means to serve their country during wartime. Starring Chishu Ryu, Kinuyo Tanaka, Kazumasa Hoshino, Eijiro Tono, Ken Uehara, Ken Mitsuda, and Haruko Sugimura. Army is a powerful and evocative film from Keisuke Kinoshita.
The film follows three generations of a family from the mid-19th Century to World War II as they all have desires to be part of the military and serve their country. Much of the film’s narrative is told during Japan’s occupation of Manchuria and into World War II as much of the first act is about a young man helping a militia soldier and in return is given a collection of books chronicling Japan’s history. Years later toward the end of the 19th Century, he passes the books to his son who would sign up to join the army and succeed but doesn’t see any action due to recurring illnesses. He hopes his son would follow in his footsteps but his son is wracked with fear yet would eventually sign up to be in the army but isn’t sure about stepping into the battlefield. Tadao Ikeda’s script follows mainly the life of Tomohiko (Chishu Ryu) who did serve his time as an army captain but never stepped foot in the battlefield as he is eager to instill everything he’s learned from the books he has inherited into the next generation of soldiers. Yet, Tomohiko finds himself at odds with the man who has hired him but also in the role his son Shintaro (Kazumasa Hoshino) has taken.
Keisuke Kinoshita’s direction is definitely mesmerizing in the way it approaches everything in a simple way. Though there’s moments in the film that do spout some Japanese propaganda due to the fact that the film was funded by the Japanese government during World War II. While much of the compositions in the film are very straightforward, Kinoshita does create some scenes that are still engaging such as a meeting between Tomohiko and an old man where Tomohiko’s wife Waka (Kinuyo Tanaka) is in the background from afar. Kinoshita’s usage of the wide shots are quite intense where it has a lot of coverage as it play into the evolution of Japan’s military as it’s more focused on training and trying to be part of something bigger than the individual.
Yet, the film is noted for an ending that was considered very controversial in its initial 1944 release as it relates to the role that Shintaro has to play for Japan. Notably as it’s shown from the perspective of someone close to Shintaro who see what he’s become and accomplished for the family but is it really worth it? Even as there is so much emphasis to honor the emperor and so much for the country unaware of the personal cost it would do to a family. Overall, Kinoshita creates a compelling and heartfelt film about a family’s desire to serve their country during wartime.
Cinematographer Yoshio Taketomi does brilliant work with the film’s black-and-white photography as it is very straightforward with some lovely lighting for some of the film’s nighttime interior/exterior scenes. Production designer Isamu Motoki does excellent work with the film’s art direction from the pawn shop that Tomohiko runs that he’s inherited from his father and grandfather to places in the small town he and his family live at.
The film’s amazing cast include some notable small roles from Ken Mitsuda as Tomohiko’s father Tomonojo, Ken Uehara as an old military officer and friend of Tomohiko in Nishina, Haruko Sugimura as Shintaro’s friend Setsu, and Eijiro Tono as Setsu’s father Sakuragi who would give Tomohiko a job in teaching young soldiers. Kazumasa Hoshino is superb as Shintaro as a young man eager to please his father while coping with the expectations laid upon him as he also tries to find his own path into the world of the army. Kinuyo Tanaka is fantastic as Shintaro’s mother/Tomohiko’s wife Waka who deals with the expectations toward her family as well as steering Shintaro into the right path and pondering everything that is expected for the country. Finally, there’s Chishu Ryu in an incredible performance as Tomohiko as a man who is eager to fulfill his father’s wishes by serving in the army as he later copes with his own failure and hoping his son would be the one to fulfill the wishes only to deal that his ideas about service are becoming obsolete.
Army is a sensational film from Keisuke Kinoshita. It’s a film that explores the idea of servitude in the Japanese army during World War II and the pressure instilled upon those serving and the demands to honor its emperor. Even it means win at all cost. In the end, Army is a phenomenal film from Keisuke Kinoshita.
Keisuke Kinoshita Films: (Port of Flowers) - (The Living Magoroku) - (Jubilation Street) - (Morning for the Osone Family) – (Carmen Comes Home) - (A Japanese Tragedy) - (Twenty-Four Eyes) - (She Was like a Wild Chrysanthemum) - (Yorokobi mo kanashimi mo ikutoshitsuki) - The Ballad of Narayama (1958 film) - (The River Fuefuki) - Immortal Love
© thevoid99 2017
Directed by Yasujiro Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, Early Summer is the story about a woman who gets a visit from her uncle who thinks she should get married as her family tries to find a good prospect for her while she deals with issues in her own life. The film is an exploration into the changing ways in postwar Japan as well as the rise of women taking their own roles with their lives. Starring Setsuko Hara, Chishu Ryu, Chikage Awashima, and Kuniko Miyake. Early Summer is a glorious yet touching film from Yasujiro Ozu.
The film is about the life of a family living in suburban Tokyo where they all support each other when they get a visit from a relative. There, the man suggests that it’s time for his 28-year old niece Noriko (Setsuko Hara) to find herself a good husband as the family tries to find men who is worthy of her yet Noriko isn’t so sure about getting married. Even as she is a modern woman with friends who had gotten married but aren’t happy about it while times are also changing in Japan prompting the family to face reality of what is happening. It’s all set in a postwar Japan where the country is coming into its own again economically though the social traditions is still in tact. Yet, there’s this emerging sense of modernism that is prevalent where the ideas of tradition might fall by the wayside as Noriko is someone who represents this conflict as she wants to make her own decisions but doesn’t want to upset her parents and older brother Koichi (Chishu Ryu).
The film’s screenplay by Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda take its time in the dynamic of this family where Noriko and her brother Koichi live in a home with their parents Shukichi and Shige (Ichiro Sugai and Chieko Higashiyama, respectively), Koichi’s wife Fumiko, and their sons Minoru (Zen Murase) and Isamu (Isao Shirosawa) as Noriko is a secretary and Koichi is a prominent physician. The visit from their uncle (Kokuten Kodo) who keeps asking about why Noriko isn’t married raises a lot of questions as Noriko is often asked by her boss Satake (Shuji Sano) about meeting a friend of his whom Koichi would see if he’s good enough for his sister. Yet, Noriko is confused as her friend Aya (Chikage Awashima) who is unmarried as she is also unsure if she wants to play into tradition. Then there’s Noriko and Koichi’s childhood friend Kenkichi Yabe (Hiroshi Nihonyanagi) who is a widower with a child as he lives with his mother (Haruko Sugimura) as he also helps out though he’s got moments in his life that is changing where it would also complicate things.
The script also revels in this world that is changing where Noriko’s parents are aware that having Noriko getting married would also cause a splinter in the family as they would live with Shukichi’s brother while Koichi and Fumiko would stay at the house with their kids. It would lead to this third act about the decision that Noriko would eventually make yet it becomes clear that it’s not going to be an easy one. Yet, her eventual decision doesn’t just play into this conflict about traditionalism and modernism but also about what Noriko wants in her life. Of course, the family’s reaction isn’t just mixed but also a bit shocking as they have no idea what to think but it’s also clear that there’s some things that traditionalism can’t deal with as times are changing.
Ozu’s direction is definitely wondrous in the way he captures the life of an ordinary family in Tokyo. Notably as it plays to that very evocative yet simplistic approach to the way he presents a scene. Much of it is shot in a single, static shot where the camera doesn’t move as it’s positioned in a wide or a medium shot to display what is going on in the scene. It all plays into this world that this family live in as there’s an intimacy that is prevalent throughout in some of light-hearted moments but also in some dramatic moments such as scene where Minoru and Isamo are upset that their father brought home a loaf of bread instead of the train tracks they wanted. Even in the way Ozu positions the camera for a dinner scene with Noriko, Aya, and their married friends is unique to showcase not just a sense of division that is emerging but the sense of the fact that times are changing.
Much of the way Ozu presents this conflict is told very subtly where he doesn’t do a lot of movements with the camera with the exception of a few dolly shots in a scene where Noriko’s parents are watching a play with Shukichi’s brother as well as a shot where Noriko and Fumiko are walking on the beach. Still, Ozu maintains something that is quite simple and poignant where he knows where to put the camera in a scene and to play out a certain reaction shot. Much of it has him not wanting to use a lot of close-ups by focusing more on a conversation scene as he knows where to put the actors into a frame. Especially for the film’s eventual scene where Noriko makes her decision as Ozu’s framing and the way he puts the actors into the frame becomes crucial for the film’s dramatic climax. Overall, Ozu crafts a very exhilarating yet engrossing film about a family dealing with changing times as well as dealing with a young woman’s future.
Cinematographer Yuharu Atsuta does excellent work with the film‘s black-and-white photography with the low-key look of the scenes at the beach and some of the daytime interior and exterior settings to the scenes set at night with lighting by Itsuo Takashita to help set the mood. Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura does nice work with the editing where it‘s mostly straightforward to play out the drama and some of its humor while using fade-outs to help structure the film. Art director Tatsuo Hamada and set decorator Shotaro Hashimoto do amazing work with the set pieces such as the home the family lives in that is quite spacious but also quaint in its look.
Costume designer Taizo Saito does terrific work with the costumes as it‘s mostly straightforward with the exception of the robes that Noriko‘s parents wear. Sound recorder Yoshisaburo Seno does superb work with the sound to capture the intimacy of what goes on in the house as well as some of the scenes set in Tokyo and in the train stations. The film’s music by Senji Ito is just exquisite for its serene yet somber orchestral score to play into some of the drama without embellishing it as it is one of the film’s major highlights.
The film’s brilliant cast includes some notable small yet effective performances from Haruko Sugimura as Kenkichi’s mother who ponders about her son’s life as he is still a widower, Shuji Sano as Noriko’s boss Satake who suggests to Noriko about meeting a friend of his as a potential prospect, Kokuten Kodo as Shukichi’s brother who brings up the subject of marriage, and Chikage Awashima as Noriko’s friend Aya who ponders about the idea of marriage as she isn’t sure after learning from friends on the downside of it. Zen Maruse and Isao Shirosawa are terrific as Koichi and Fumiko’s young sons Minoru and Isamu, respectively, as they’re two boys obsessed with trains as they test the patience of their elders. Hiroshi Nihonyanagi is excellent as Koichi and Noriko’s childhood friend Kenkichi as a fellow doctor who helps the family with some problems while dealing with his own circumstances in his career.
Ichiro Sugai and Chieko Higashiyama are amazing as Noriko and Koichi’s parents in Shukichi and Shige, respectively, as they carry a sense of warmth and wisdom as two parents who want what’s best for Noriko while dealing with the fact that times are changing as it would play into Noriko’s eventual decision. Kuniko Miyake is wonderful as Koichi’s wife Fumiko as the observer of sorts in the family as she also voices her opinion on a few things while wondering the effect of Noriko’s eventual decision. Chishu Ryu is fantastic as Noriko’s older brother Koichi as a doctor who tries to see if the prospect that Satake suggests is any good while dealing with his own family as well as up holding a sense of tradition in that family. Finally, there’s Setsuko Hara in an incredible performance as Noriko as a 28-year old woman dealing with the ideas of old and new ideas as she is eager to make her own decision but wants to respect the wishes of her family as it’s a truly mesmerizing performance for the actress.
Early Summer is a majestic film from Yasujiro Ozu. Thanks to its cast and touching portrait of a family going through changing times while finding a prospective husband for their daughter. It’s a film that is truly engaging for the way it explores tradition clashing with modernism as well as the life of a family that is truly universal for an audience to relate to. In the end, Early Summer is a remarkable film from Yasujiro Ozu.
Yasujiro Ozu Films: (Sword of Penitence) - (Days of Youth) - Tokyo Chorus - I Was Born, But... - (Dragnet Girl) - Passing Fancy - (A Mother Should Be Loved) - A Story of Floating Weeds - (An Inn in Tokyo) - (The Only Son) - (What Did the Lady Forget?) - (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family) - (There Was a Father) - Record of a Tenement Gentleman - (A Hen in the Wind) - Late Spring - (The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice) - Tokyo Story - Early Spring - Tokyo Twilight - (Equinox Flower) - Good Morning - Floating Weeds - Late Autumn - The End of Summer - An Autumn Afternoon
© thevoid99 2013
Based on the short novel Father and Daughter by Kazuo Hirotsu, Late Spring is the story about a widowed father and his relationship with his daughter whom he tries to find a good man to be her husband. Directed by Yasujiro Ozu and screenplay by Ozu and Kogo Noda, the film is an exploration into a man trying to give his daughter away to someone else in the hopes that she can start of a life of her own. Starring Chishu Ryu, Setsuko Hara, and Haruko Sugimura. Late Spring is an extraordinary yet evocative film from Yasujiro Ozu.
The film is a simple story about the life of a widowed professor and his adult daughter as the latter cares for him as she is content with her role. Yet, there’s people in her family who asks into why she isn’t married as he has fallen for another woman while hoping for his daughter to find someone for herself so she can have her own life. It’s a film that explores the complex relationship between Shukichi Somiya (Chishu Ryu) and his daughter Noriko (Setsuko Hara) where the former is a widow who works as a professor while Noriko is his caretaker and enjoys it as she’s even friends with her father’s assistant Hattori (Jun Umasi). When Noriko’s Aunt Masa (Haruko Sugimura) keeps asking about why Noriko at the age of 27 doesn’t want to get married, she tries to set Noriko up with a man she knows. At first she refuses until she finds out about her father’s new relationship with a widow prompting her to think that maybe her father isn’t going to need her.
The film’s screenplay by Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda takes it time to explore this unique relationship as it’s set in postwar Japan where there’s certain traditions that had to be uphold. For a woman like Noriko, she isn’t keen on the idea of marriage as one of her friends in Aya (Yumeji Tsukioka) is a divorcee who is also very cynical towards marriage. Noriko’s Aunt Masa is a traditionalist who believes that Noriko should be married as one of the film’s themes is tradition vs. modernism yet it all plays to Noriko trying to deal with the changes in her family life as well as her relationship with her father whom she constantly worries about. Yet, Shukichi is a man that has been through a lot as he knows how helpful Noriko is but he is also a traditionalist as he is also eager to start his own life without his daughter and with a new woman in his life.
Ozu’s direction is truly ravishing in his simple approach to compositions and framing where there’s an intimacy to these images but also a beauty that is just intoxicating to look at. While there’s a few scenes as a point-of-view shot of a moving train and the scene where Noriko and Hattori are riding bicycles towards the beach. Much of Ozu’s direction remains in this very direct, simple static shot where there’s very little movement in the cameras as he’s more concerned with what is going on in the frame whether it’s a wide shot or a medium shot. Especially as Ozu makes the home where Shukichi and Noriko live in as a major character in the film where it’s a place where they can have their dinners while Shukichi can do his work. It’s a place that Noriko can call home but the events in her life has her feeling less comfortable as she seeks to find something else.
There’s some very key scenes in the film where Ozu’s direction is very succinct in the way he shoots his characters into a frame with some low angles where the camera is positioned. Notably a key scene where Shukichi and Noriko are watching a Noh play where there’s a woman (Kuniko Miyake) that Shukichi is nodding to as Noriko realizes who it is as the play that is happening make some very frank suggestions into what Noriko doesn’t want to believe that plays into her views on marriage. The drama does intensify but the way Ozu presents it is very low-key as he continues to maintain that sense of intimacy such as a sequence where Shukichi and Noriko go on a trip to Kyoto with another professor friend of Shukichi that showcases what good might come in. Even as someone as modern and independent like Noriko cannot sway into the ideas of tradition. Overall, Ozu crafts a very delicate yet powerful film about a woman’s relationship with her father.
Cinematographer Yuharu Atsuta does excellent work with the film‘s black-and-white photography from the look of some of its daytime interior and exteriors to the use of lights, with help by Haruo Isono, for some of the scenes at night including a key scene at a hotel in Kyoto. Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura does fantastic work with the editing to create some rhythmic cuts to play into some of the livelier moments as well as the dramatic reactions without making it too fast in cutting from one person to another. Art director Tatsuo Hamada and set decorator Mototsugu Komaki do amazing work with the home that Shukichi and Noriko live in as well as some of the place they go to like the restaurants and bars.
Costume designer Bunjiro Suzuki does wonderful work with the costumes where most of it is casual with the exception of the robes the characters wear including the lavish wedding clothes. The sound work of Hidetaka Sasaki is terrific for the intimacy it creates in some of the more low-key scenes as well as in some of the locations and such that includes the Noh play scene. The film’s music by Senji Ito is brilliant for its orchestral-based score that can playful at times while low and heavy in the more somber, dramatic moments of the film.
The film’s superb cast includes some notable small performances from Kuniko Miyake as Shukichi’s new lover Mrs. Miwa, Masao Mishima as Shukichi’s friend Professor Onodera that Noriko respects though questions about his fondness for marriage, and Jun Umasi as Shukichi’s assistant Hattori who is another friend of Noriko who seems to find that balance between modernism and traditionalism. Yumeji Tsukioka is excellent as Noriko’s friend Aya who had been through a divorce as she dwells on her cynical ideas of marriage. Haruko Sugimura is amazing as Aunt Masa as a traditionalist who is concerned for Noriko’s future as well as hoping she can find happiness in marriage. Chishu Ryu is great as Shukichi Somiya as a man who is concerned for his daughter’s future as an adult as he tries to find someone good for her. Finally, there’s Setsuko Hara in a radiant performance as Noriko as she has this air of grace as a modern woman trying to find herself yet deals with the ideas of tradition as she longs to remain her father’s caretaker while being unsure in the idea of marriage.
Late Spring is a remarkable film from Yasujiro Ozu that features exquisite performances from Setsuko Hara and Chishu Ryu. The film is truly a unique look into the world of postwar Japan where things are changing as well as a struggle to maintain the traditions of the country. Notably as it is largely based on the perspective of a woman who finds herself in the middle of this conflict. In the end, Late Spring is a tremendous film from Yasujiro Ozu.
Yasujiro Ozu Films: (Sword of Penitence) - (Days of Youth) - Tokyo Chorus - I Was Born, But... - (Dragnet Girl) - Passing Fancy - (A Mother Should Be Loved) - A Story of Floating Weeds - (An Inn in Tokyo) - (The Only Son) - (What Did the Lady Forget?) - (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family) - (There Was a Father) - Record of a Tenement Gentleman - (A Hen in the Wind) - Early Summer - (The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice) - Tokyo Story - Early Spring - Tokyo Twilight - (Equinox Flower) - Good Morning - Floating Weeds - Late Autumn - The End of Summer - An Autumn Afternoon
© thevoid99 2013
