Tokyo Story (Sub) | Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama

Tokyo Story (Sub) | Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama | Its also great to see Japan in the 50's

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Tokyo Story (Sub)

	Tokyo Story (Sub) Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama New Yorker Video, 1998 average customer review:based on 15 reviews
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highly recommended

Yasujiro Ozu's economical style reaches its zenith in this deceptively simple 1953 story of an elderly couple in rural Japan who go to visit their married children in Tokyo. Chishu Ryo (Ozu's favorite performer) and Chieko Higashiyama star as the aging parents who find a cold welcome waiting for them from their two urbanized children, too busy with work and their own lives to pay them any attention. After a miserable trip to a noisy spa, the mother spends a pleasant night with the widow of their other son (who had died in the war) while the father drinks the evening away with old friends. But on their return trip, the mother falls ill and the family reunites one last time at her sickbed. Within this simple framework, Ozu creates a quiet but profound drama of the changing face of Japanese culture and the loss of traditional values in modern society. Described by critics as Japan's most "Japanese" director, Ozu's style by this time had become firmly established: the entire film is shot from an unmoving camera 36 inches from the floor (the point of view of an observer kneeling on a tatami mat), edited in a subtly off-center manner and paced at a placid tempo. Ozu's graceful style, understated direction, and rich evocation of character creates an elegantly realized world of dignity in the face of disappointment and loss. --Sean Axmaker

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Accepting life for what it is

Tokyo Story is a movie that can be understood and loved by people everywhere because its theme is so universal. Kids grow up and neglect their parents. Sadly, the children often don't come to this realization until it's too late. In the movie, the youngest son expresses his guilt during his mother's funeral when he says we should be kind to our parents while they are alive, because filial piety cannot reach beyond the grave. But I don't think Ozu is condemning children. He's just pointing out that this is the way life is. The character Noriko poignantly states this, later in the movie.

Just a quick note about the famous lines spoken near the end of the film. The English subtitles give the spirit of the Japanese. But what Kyoko actually says to Noriko is, "Iya ne yononaka te" (The world is disgusting, isn't it?). Noriko responds by saying, "So, iya na koto bakari" (That's right, there are only disgusting things). Noriko can smile when she says this because she has come to accept life for what it is.

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Its also great to see Japan in the 50's

Ozu is one of my favorite directors. He quietly stirs your heart like a meditational tea ceremony.
I especially enjoy scenes of Japan in the 50's because that is the Japan I left behind as a child. The old father in the movie represents to me a Japan I will probably never see again. He is so gentle and loving.

Wonderful human study with a distinct feel

If you've read anything of the description, you'll know the story doesn't appear to have any fascinating elements to it for someone who is perhaps 25 years old or younger. But if you have experienced death of a parent, or the awkwardness of dealing with grown siblings, or even dealing with embarrassing parental behavior---there is something here for you. In addition, if you are at all a History Channel buff, there is the added attraction of seeing life in postwar Japan, and what the middle-class there were doing while we were having our baby boom and moving to our "little boxes" in the suburbs. I like to look at the clothes and also see a society in a major transition while still having the influence (still felt) from American occupation. Plus if you are interested in religious and social practices, the funeral in the film is moving, and you may even come away with the Buddhist funeral chantings droning on in your head (I mean that in a GOOD way). It's kinda fun to compare this with American films about Japan made in the same period, like "Sayonara" and "Teahouse of the August Moon". And if you like this, you should see "Odd Obsession" and some of Kurosawa's contemporary films, like "High and Low".I don't know about what you learn about in 4th grade in 2003, but when I was in 4th grade we had to learn about Japan. I found it so fascinating I wanted to redo my room just like the rooms you'll see in "Tokyo Story" and I also wanted to eat Japanese-style constantly. So I rate this ichi-ban (#1)! If you're expecting some big color Douglas Sirk-style melodrama, you'll be disappointed, and the editing will seem very slow by post-MTV standards. But the actors are so good they hold your attention. I guess I made my point. Enjoy!

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A MOVING MASTERPIECE!

If I had to choose the 10 best movies ever made this would be close to number one. One wonders that cinema could be this: a life-enriching, moving masterpiece, that actually makes you feel better about Humankind and hopeful for the future. Capra's It's a Wonderful Life is the only film I love as much as Tokyo Story.

Please, PLEASE! When the DVD?

Profound and Moving

An elderly couple go to visit their children in Tokyo, but the children mostly don't have time for them. They learn to accept how things have come out.

Not much of a story on the surface, but the strength of the movie is the vivid portrayal of the family, the fine acting, and the emotions brought up for the viewer. If you have children--or parents--you will be deeply moved.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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