Last night I happened to see Tokyo Monogatari (Tokyo Story; 1953, directed by Yasujiro Ozu) on Turner Classic Movies. It had been a long time since I'd seen it. The pace is astonishingly slow by the standards of modern American movie-making--which makes it rather refreshing. Not a lot happens, really. Visually, the whole thing could be encapsulated by a closely cropped, low-angle interior shot of the father sitting resignedly, fanning himself in the summer heat. Nevertheless, it remains a moving, poignant study in disappointment. I imagine it has become a classic because it is such a perfect vignette of the human condition. Setsuko Hara's performance as the widowed daughter-in-law Noriko is especially powerful, despite--or rather because of--its remarkable restraint. Recommended.
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