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By
DEBORAH NICOL
In every decade, in every
country, a generational gap has created a chasm
between parents and children. Whether leaving a
small town, creating a new family, or rebelling
against previous traditions, nothing could be more
universal. Highly respected Japanese director
Yasujiro Ozu presents this 1953 tale of the
inevitable circle of life in society in such a
subtle, matter-of-fact presentation that the
audience cannot help but be absorbed into the
familiar.
Aging parents from a small town decide to visit
all of their children in and around the bustling
city of Tokyo. Ozu favorite Chishu Ryu takes on
the role of the elderly father, full of soft
gentleness that belies a rambunctious past. It
becomes apparent that they have not seen their
family in quite some time as their grandchildren
are not familiar to them, and yet their children
treat the visit as a burden upon their day-to-day
lives. This is most apparent in the whiny
aggravation of daughter Shige, played to the hilt
by another Ozu familiar, Haruko Sugimura.
Annoyance and selfishness is served as the main
course, despite the parents' calm and untroubled
demeanors. Their only solace is found in the
generosity of their widowed daughter-in-law,
played with sweet graciousness by Japanese starlet
Setsuko Hara.
The stifling heat of the summer compounds the
awkwardness of a family who can no longer
communicate. Grown children prefer to attend to
daily routines rather than the rare visit of their
parents, and attempt to pawn off tourist duties to
others. The cost of shipping their folks to a
nearby spa town is preferred over the
inconvenience of sharing their household. Even the
mother's premonition that this will be their last
visit due to distance and age is dismissed lightly
by her children, who barely give it a second
thought.
What is beautiful in Ozu's telling of the tale are
the subtle inferences to the past without being
heavy-handed. World War II has had quite an effect
on the country, and yet there is no need for great
discussion on the topic. Only in a moment of
sake-induced weakness does the father and his
friends remember their sons lost to the war
(including the MIA husband of his
daughter-in-law), and in an interesting follow-up
they disparage the offspring that are still alive.
The lack of high success in a busy and changing
world prove sore points for the fathers who feel
the need to lie about their children's
achievements to hide their shame. Though far less
apparent than their children's exasperation, this
provides perfect juxtaposition against their
children's treatment of their parents.
Also subtle are references to the family's
personal past, and the father's drunken behaviors
of long ago that may have shaped his treatment in
the present. The daughter-in-law is most
compassionate to the elderly parents, perhaps
because she does not share this identity to the
kindly couple before her. It becomes obvious that
her husband shared many traits with his father,
and through this history she and her mother-in-law
bond.
The story is not unusual, although never
uninteresting. Families evolve and affect the next
generation of families, and imperfections never
seem to get buried. Despite putting the best face
forward, someone will always trudge up an
undesired or forgotten memory, and the past will
always affect the future. In a changing world, the
eldest generation holds tightly onto traditions
while the newest generation wishes to start
afresh. This film is incontestably timeless.
Though Ozu captures a slice of life in a changing
Japanese culture, the tale could be applied
anywhere in the world, at any time in history.
It cannot be stated enough how satisfying a
Criterion DVD presentation is to a true film
lover. In this two-disc set, the first disc
includes a brilliant commentary track by David
Desser, editor of "Ozu's Tokyo Story." This track
plays as a master class for film buffs, with much
detail concerning the director's history,
directive styling of the film, and Japanese
sociology. The film itself is presented in crisp
b/w, however the lighting wavers slightly yet
constantly and there are occasional marks on the
film. The white subtitles are also sometimes
difficult to read against the b/w background.
However, these complaints are not terribly
distracting and the film can easily be
appreciated.
The second disc contains the 1983 biography "I
lived, but..." (a play on titles of Ozu's earliest
films) by Kazuo Inoue. This very detailed look at
Ozu's life and work includes interviews with
family, friends, cast and crew, and is quite
extensive. The disc also includes the documentary
"Talking with Ozu," created on the 90th
anniversary of Ozu's birth. Directors from all
over the world gush on the importance of Ozu's
stamp on filmmaking, and this becomes the perfect
expression for just how universal his films
remain. |
