Tokyo Chorus
Directed by Yasujirô Ozu
Written by Kôgo Noda
Japan, 1931
After launching its 2013 schedule with one of the most unrelentingly somber works of art ever committed to celluloid, the Tsff took a more genial tack on the second night of its run. Revered for his celebrated series of post-World War Two family melodramas, Yasujirô Ozu actually began his career as a comedic filmmaker – and this rambunctious movie (which befited immensely from keyboardist Laura Silberberg’s jaunty live accompaniment) reflects that. As special guest speaker (and Shinsedai Cinema Festival co-programmer and co-director) Chris MaGee argued during his introductory remarks, Tokyo Chorus occupies a crucial place in Ozu’s oeuvre, announcing a “familial turn” that would eventually produce masterpieces like Late Spring (1949) and Tokyo Story (1953).
The intense dramatics of those later efforts are mostly absent from Tokyo Chorus, but that does not mean that this isn’t a serious film. In fact,...
Directed by Yasujirô Ozu
Written by Kôgo Noda
Japan, 1931
After launching its 2013 schedule with one of the most unrelentingly somber works of art ever committed to celluloid, the Tsff took a more genial tack on the second night of its run. Revered for his celebrated series of post-World War Two family melodramas, Yasujirô Ozu actually began his career as a comedic filmmaker – and this rambunctious movie (which befited immensely from keyboardist Laura Silberberg’s jaunty live accompaniment) reflects that. As special guest speaker (and Shinsedai Cinema Festival co-programmer and co-director) Chris MaGee argued during his introductory remarks, Tokyo Chorus occupies a crucial place in Ozu’s oeuvre, announcing a “familial turn” that would eventually produce masterpieces like Late Spring (1949) and Tokyo Story (1953).
The intense dramatics of those later efforts are mostly absent from Tokyo Chorus, but that does not mean that this isn’t a serious film. In fact,...
- 4/6/2013
- by David Fiore
- SoundOnSight
It’s that time of the week when you want to sit back, relax a bit and throw on something new and exciting. Well, you’ve come to the right place. It’s the second week in this Hulu Plus excursion, and I’ve had a blast with it. A lot of Daily Show, Colbert Report and Kitchen Nightmares intake in the last week. I can’t help but love my politically minded comedy and angry chef shows. But I digress.
This last week there was a ton of new content from Criterion put onto Hulu Plus. A wonderful array of films and a ton of supplemental material from certain films, which I will yet again break down for all of you, and the links will be within, so you don’t even have to search for them. We here at the Criterion Cast aim to please.
When the first...
This last week there was a ton of new content from Criterion put onto Hulu Plus. A wonderful array of films and a ton of supplemental material from certain films, which I will yet again break down for all of you, and the links will be within, so you don’t even have to search for them. We here at the Criterion Cast aim to please.
When the first...
- 5/8/2011
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
Japanese actor whose forte was courageous, independent, strong-willed heroines
Although Japan had been making films since the beginnings of cinema, Japanese films remained virtually unknown in the west for more than half a century. Shamefully, it has taken almost as long again to recognise the greatness of the director Mikio Naruse, and consequently the remarkable talents of Hideko Takemine, his leading lady in more than a dozen films, who has died of lung cancer aged 86.
In the same way as Kinuyo Tanaka became associated with the films of Kenji Mizoguchi, and Setsuko Hara with those of Yasujiro Ozu, Takemine embodied Naruse's heroines – courageous, independent, strong-willed, conscientious women, faced with misfortune. Naruse once remarked about his female characters: "If they try to move forward even a little, they quickly hit a wall." The director Akira Kurosawa's description of Naruse's films as "looking calm and ordinary at first glance but which...
Although Japan had been making films since the beginnings of cinema, Japanese films remained virtually unknown in the west for more than half a century. Shamefully, it has taken almost as long again to recognise the greatness of the director Mikio Naruse, and consequently the remarkable talents of Hideko Takemine, his leading lady in more than a dozen films, who has died of lung cancer aged 86.
In the same way as Kinuyo Tanaka became associated with the films of Kenji Mizoguchi, and Setsuko Hara with those of Yasujiro Ozu, Takemine embodied Naruse's heroines – courageous, independent, strong-willed, conscientious women, faced with misfortune. Naruse once remarked about his female characters: "If they try to move forward even a little, they quickly hit a wall." The director Akira Kurosawa's description of Naruse's films as "looking calm and ordinary at first glance but which...
- 1/15/2011
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
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