• It’s a top 10 film (towards the bottom) of 1956 but with three years off after 1953’s masterpiece, Tokyo Story, it’s a bit of a disappointment for an auteur so clearly in his prime.
  • Starts with two establishing shots, one of the smoke stacks—then the train and then the gorgeous Ozu interior we’ve become accustomed to
  • The beautifully cluttered alley
  • Ozu is almost always stubbornly modern but never in a rush or trendy— this is post WW2 Japan, English/American influences, we have plenty of typewriters, gambling
  • More focus on Ozu’s love of signage
  • Plenty of beer bottles in front of the frame- obstructing it and framing it like Von Sternberg
  • The group of friends staggered when talking, waiting for a train- this is more inclusive in terms of being an ensemble—Ryu is in it but it’s not a large role and we don’t have Hara here
  • Ozu uses the cord from the electronic iron as a way to block the frame
  • Great standalone cutaway of wooden boats in the dock and their masts all going up vertically
  • Laundry cutaway about 55 min in
  • A slow-burn post WW2 disillusionment—scene of buddies drinking and talking about an old dead war buddy and how his wife remarried “good thing we didn’t die”– Ryô Ikebe is sort of a vacant zombie- intentional
  • A dozen or more gorgeous cutaways to and interiors—it only really pales in comparison with Tokyo Story
  • It’s a complex marriage
  • For the first time I’ve noticed Ozu uses these transparent blinds to block the frame- it’s a great effect
  • Love the funeral doors ushering you into and creating a pattern for your eyes
  • In one scene Ikebe is moving (and his wife has been staying away after a fight) and the interior is just so gorgeously disheveled. Haha- Ozu must have had fun with that.
  • There’s a long conversation at the bar with about 17 minutes remaining that sucks some life out of the film- it’s a larger scene by a lager margin in comparison with the rest of the narrative rhythm
  • The title is about a stage of life—it’s a quieter time for this couple near the end. Spring—they’re restarting.
  • 144 minutes- domestic drama epic
  • Smoke stack again near ending with the couple, staggered perfectly, looking out the window at the train- I couldn’t find a screenshot but it’s a stunner
  • HR