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Guardian review:
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His most famous film, and certainly one of his masterpieces, is Tokyo Story. In it an elderly couple are taken to visit their grown-up children in Tokyo. Too busy to entertain them, the children pack them off to a noisy resort. Returning to Tokyo, the old woman visits the widow of another son, who treats her better, while the old man gets drunk with some old companions. They seem to realise they are a burden, and simply try to smooth things over as best they can. By now the children have, albeit guiltily, given up on them; even when their mother is taken ill and dies, they rush back to Tokyo after attending the funeral. A simple proverb expresses their failure: "Be kind to your parents while they are alive. Filial piety cannot reach beyond the grave." The last sequence is of the old man alone in his seaside home, followed by an outside shot of the rooftops of the town and a boat passing by on the water. Life goes on.
The film condemns no one and its sense of inevitability carries with it only a certain resigned sadness. "Isn't life disappointing," someone says at one point. Yet the simple observations are so acute that you feel that no other film could express its subject matter much better.
From The 10 best movies of 2003 (SF Examiner):
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The best film I saw in 2003 was a 50 year-old masterpiece, Yasujiru Ozu's "Tokyo Story," which played in a new print at the Castro Theater as part of the 100th anniversary of the great Japanese director's birth. The film's beautiful artistry and absolute, timeless connection with the human condition literally has the power to change lives.
My first reactions
2003-10-19
Because I'm planning to see some of the 30 or so films of Yasujiro Ozu that the PacificFilmArchives will be showing in November and December, I decided to see at least one ahead of time to judge how excited to get by the upcoming retrospective (this year is the centenary of Ozu's birth).
Last night, I rented and started to watch what many consider Ozu's greatest film, Tokyo Story. I found it really slow-going and, in fact, fell asleep in the middle of the film. I didn't take that as a negative sign of Ozu's artistry (but more of my fatigue). I watched the rest of Tokyo Story this afternoon and found the film a very satisfying experience. Maybe I'm struggling very much with how I as an adult son thousands of miles away from my parents am or am living as a good son -- but the movie speaks right to the heart of my family situation.
Misc
For what it's worth, Tokyo Story is number 5 on the Sight and Sound Critics Top Ten Poll 2002.
