Tokyo Story consistently ranks so high on lists of the all-time great films that anyone approaching it for the first time might expect something stiff, inaccessible or dull.
But no: Tokyo is quite simply one of the most beautiful films ever to grace the screen. Full of stunning performances (particularly by Chishu Ryu as a man who must come to terms with a new life) and subtly moving but seemingly static shots, the film takes its time and ends up reducing its viewers to tears.
The story is simple: an elderly couple journey to Tokyo for a few days and are treated with disregard by their children. This may seem to be the body of the film, but in fact, it's merely exposition for the stunning final half hour.
Tokyo Story is about life itself and it comments on the human condition with an eloquence that will keep any willing viewer enthralled. Ozu may not share Kurosawa's flowing mise-en-scene or Mizoguchi's objective portrayal of human suffering, but he is, to my mind, the greatest of Japanese directors. And Tokyo Story is his masterpiece.
But no: Tokyo is quite simply one of the most beautiful films ever to grace the screen. Full of stunning performances (particularly by Chishu Ryu as a man who must come to terms with a new life) and subtly moving but seemingly static shots, the film takes its time and ends up reducing its viewers to tears.
The story is simple: an elderly couple journey to Tokyo for a few days and are treated with disregard by their children. This may seem to be the body of the film, but in fact, it's merely exposition for the stunning final half hour.
Tokyo Story is about life itself and it comments on the human condition with an eloquence that will keep any willing viewer enthralled. Ozu may not share Kurosawa's flowing mise-en-scene or Mizoguchi's objective portrayal of human suffering, but he is, to my mind, the greatest of Japanese directors. And Tokyo Story is his masterpiece.