Actors: Ganjiro Nakamura, Setsuko Hara
Director: Yasujiro Ozu
I was tempted to start this entry with something remarkably crude about people who don't like Ozu (creating a natural juxtaposition with Ozu's obsession regarding social graces), but there's no call for that, is there? Ozu is a masterful director, but his films are certainly not for everyone.
This film feels very un-Ozu, as it opens on neon signs and the first scene is set in a bar. Eventually we get rolling with a complicated family relationship (one which, were I presented with pictures and names, I don't think I'd be able to sort out who's who - there's even a point in the movie where Ozu puts in a scene of blatant exposition involving some side characters making sure we know how everyone's related). It's hard to know what's the foreground and background in Ozu films - times in Japan are changing. The modes of dress among old and young are different. The ways in which people go about their business are also different. We see how these things affect the way the characters interact with one another.
There's a bit of (surprising) hamfistedness here, but in all, it's another wonderful examination of how everyday people live.
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