I will say that Ozu’s style definitely is one that feels much more dated than Kurosawa. It reminds me of a series of still life portraits. Something I can appreciate the craft and execution of, even if the genre doesn’t speak to me.
I will say that, at some point, I hope that a Kurosawa film gets tabbed (I’ll certainly nominate one at some point, but not next month for sure), because I think his works hold up better for modern audiences. Ultimately the locked camera, the low perspective, and the face center screen looking straight into the camera effects of Ozu do make it a tough sell. But that is his style.
And, like others, I don’t use ‘I don’t feel like watching more’ as a negative. It is merely a commentary.
To me this was an argument between a couple for the sake of argument. Her husband hands the cake, and I do not really think the daughter would ever consider not handing it either (once you’ve gone and bought something, you have done the most troublesome part it is often assumed).
I got the impression, not just through the cake scene but also the entire fact they sent them to a spa, that that particular daughter did not think it was worth spending her time or money on her parents. They would settle for less, accept less, so give them less. it’s an… “odd” way to treat someone’s guests and certainly their aging parents.
I really liked her character, and may give her character more credit than she is due (in part because I think the actress is the best of the movie), but I thought she was mouthing off a lot and having that attitude as a way to keep her feelings away. But that’s just a personal read indeed, and she could as well be a really terrible person.
Maybe she is meant to be read differently, but she sealed her fate in my eyes when she talked about taking her mom’s kimono… the body was barely even cold at that point.
I am pretty familiar with Japanese culture and agree with you. I thought she was callous and particularly self-centered of all the children. She broke up a bit at the end, but settled into her selfish norm after that (trying to get others to leave early as well so she could save face and not be the only one to leave so soon).
I cringed at that too, but told myself that she’s just being practical. Rationally speaking, even if you love your parents, you still have to think of the practical things, like taking a mourning dress with you on your trip.
Yeah the way she calculated her savings, but more than that, wasn’t she actually eating the cake she said was too good for them? I mean it’s one thing to save money and buy the less but good product but then to hoard it for yourself.
Also, in Japan, gifting is huge, HUGE. There are entire stores that exist just to resell gifts. You don’t skimp on gifts. The thing I am not sure about though is when that started. I assume before the American influence because that’s not really part of American culture. We’re talking about a culture that you should return with gifts for everyone just for a weekend trip, so not kind of treat your guests like that, especially you’re aging parents, who came to spend time with their family and experience the city, yikes.
Yeah, I think Ozu specifically had her break down so hard at the end to humanize her a bit and get the audience to empathize with her more. She is the most selfish of the siblings, but she isn’t horrible. Just the most callous/self-centered.
Omiyage is just one of the customs that make me very wary of ever visiting Japan. I’m reasonably well traveled, but from afar Japan just seems utterly foreign to a Usian. That said, gift giving upon return from a trip is present (though not quite so codified and etiquette-bound as in Japan.) We have gift shops and souvenirs too; they just have different implied connotations, and the etiquette is far less formal.
Some try to trace the souvenir gifting way back, but… let’s say caution is very much advised when dealing with Japanese timelines.
In any case, it is very codified (there are price tiers for gifts, and they are fixated — they should in no case be overexpensive), and are usually brought back from places you visit (no matter how far or close they may be, although going next street and bringing a gift is poor-spirited). The gift itself is supposed to be of little significance: they are there to make it easier to engage in conversation. Now this all get trickier because when you are gifted something, you are supposed to gift something back of the appropriate value. I think this behaviour is very probably a post-war trend, inspired by the rampant capitalism-a-go-go, because we have to buy more-more-more.
To the daughter, her parents are very close and don’t deserve a tier 2 gift, while she knows a tier 1 gift, while lame, will make them as happy, so her snarkling at her husband can be understood, but he’s doing the right thing by showing he thinks about everybody in the house and bringing those gift back, which he does by handing as he took the trouble to buy them.
I could also try to be hypocritical and claim the daughter doesn’t want to embarass her parents with a proper gift (anything above chips) that they’d be feeling obliged too and don’t have the mean to make up for on their end, but it is made pretty clear throughout the movie the parents have no intentions of giving back - and here we are, back at my lecture where the parents are the root of all evil! I’m kidding, of course.
That is so super spot-on on the real greedyness of modern people (let’s not waste time!), I was delighted to see it featured.
I highly recommend visiting Japan. it really is a beautiful country, unique in very ways and also surprisingly similar. The mixture of high tech and small farms… it’s a great country to travel in. I would recommend going beyond Tokyo if you ever get the chance. The faux politeness thing though still exists. It is… frustrating, but the degree in this movie… I am not sure if he was going for extremes or maybe pointing out what is there. I mean aside from the shots which might have been unique at the time, I am not entirely sure what the message is other than, maybe make time for your parents… even the alcoholic ones who are not content their son is a doctor, a doctor!
Yeah that’s why I wasn’t sure. I didn’t see it in this movie, the actual gift giving part, but the treatment of guests I think has been a longer tradition as is the way you treat your elders. Also, if other countries have entire stores designed to resell unopened gifts… I just have’t heard of it. I saw it there though.
I mean the kids in the movie, what little there is, came off pretty spoiled and selfish, although they had those moments with the grandma and youngest son.
Sure, but again it was the way she said it while wolfing down the cake herself plus wanting her mom’s stuff before she was even really in the ground and as others said, trying to get others to leave with her. It wasn’t one thing.
It reminds me a little of Home for the Holidays, although that movie is a lot more sibling centric and less with the parents. What they do at the end though is show the kids, the selfish daughter, like the whole group doing their thing, their separate lives, showing the love, the happy moments. Whereas this movie just kind of leaves you with not great impressions of most of the characters. Also the girl that stayed behind, with the parents, completely overlooked, barely mentioned even except for that one scene where she is just angry. It’s like we don’t get to know anything about her.
But what we saw was very telling. And Ozu did that for a reason, I think. He wanted us, with no preconceived notions based on her behavior or attitudes, to see the Tokyo family (the title…). And we saw what she thinks of them and particularly her sister. She thinks they are a bunch of yo-yos (I think that is the technical term).
I think Ozu sees the benefits of and inevitability of Modernization post-war( ending ossified gender roles, the end of militarism). These are all portrayed positively. But he shows us what he thinks is being lost in the rush to modernity. Family. Humility. Consideration. Serenity. Humanity.
I share that same impression, although I am questionning if that is my pessimism or if it was really the point of Ozu. Reading some of the other point of views here, I tend to think it is my bias, but I can’t shake his other, very dark takes on Japanese society’s other aspects.
On his filming. It’s often something Japanese directors claim, while watching their movies you can’t think of anything but a neutral regard. I never heard the guy talk if why I am asking.
