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Saturday, February 22, 2014

Blind Spot: Tokyo Story (1953)

Ozu's masterful film is a must-see.

Directed by Yasujirô Ozu
Produced by Takeshi Yamamoto
Written by Kôgo Noda and Yasujirô Ozu
Starring Chishu Ryu, Chiyeko Higashiyama, So Yamamura, Setsuko Hara, Haruko Sugimura, Kyoto Kagawa and Shiro Osaka

Plot Summary: An elderly couple visit their children in Tokyo, only to find them preoccupied with their own lives.

Significance: As Ozu's most acclaimed film, it was featured very high in the latest Sight and Sound Poll (#1 in the directors poll and #3 in the critics one). However, the film wasn't lavished with many honors upon its original release, with the Sutherland Trophy from the BFI being the highest award it was given.

Thoughts: Ozu's family drama is a tour-de-force in minimalist storytelling. It's easy to see why the film is so highly regarded amongst filmmakers and critics, as it tells this simple story of family so well. The performances are very natural, and Ozu captures them without intrusive camerawork or overbearing music. Everything is just right. With a master in full control, this sublime, bittersweet story makes a wonderful film. Like last month's entry, this is my second film from this celebrated director (the first being Early Spring), and it is likely to remain my favorite film from Ozu. It's not always good to have high expectations, but in this case, you can believe the hype.

Rating: ****

This is the second film in my 2014 Blind Spot Series, as first started by Ryan McNeil.
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10 comments:

  1. walypalaFebruary 22, 2014 at 10:10 PM

    See if you can hunt out the updated version, Tokyo Family. Came out last year and is quite remarkable in its own right.

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    1. JoshFebruary 23, 2014 at 5:29 PM

      Oh, I've never heard of the updated version. I'll look into it.

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  2. thevoid99February 23, 2014 at 12:22 AM

    This is still my favorite Ozu film as I did a lot of Ozu films last year w/ Floating Weeds being one of my Blind Spots last year. You can read my list of the best films of his that I've seen so far.

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    1. JoshFebruary 23, 2014 at 5:30 PM

      I'm way behind on his films, but I suspect this will be at the top of my list as well.

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  3. keith71_98February 23, 2014 at 4:07 PM

    This one is new to me too. Really need to take time to see it.

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    1. JoshFebruary 23, 2014 at 5:31 PM

      Hope you get a chance to see it. It's a fantastic film.

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  4. Ryan McNeilFebruary 25, 2014 at 12:09 PM

    This was a Blind Spot entry of my own back in December. I was really drawn-in with what the story says about the way family dynamics change through the years. What made that even more interesting was when a reader of my site from India weighed in and said that he found the same thread fascinating, but from a different angle since due to the cultural differences between there and North America.

    Such a subtly beautiful film, no?

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    1. JoshFebruary 25, 2014 at 12:43 PM

      Oh, it's a gem, no doubt. Interesting to see different perspectives on the same thread in the film.

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  5. AnonymousFebruary 28, 2014 at 8:17 AM

    This is a pretty great film. I saw this a few years ago and really connected to it. Nice write up bro.

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    1. JoshFebruary 28, 2014 at 10:34 AM

      Thanks man! It only gets better the more I think about it.

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