Tokyo Chorus (Tokyo no korasu)
Directed by Yasujiro Ozu
Written by Komatsu Kitamuro and Yasujiro Ozu
1931/Japan
Shochiku
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Criterion Channel
Shinji Okajima: A drowning man will clutch at straws.
Excellent early silent from my favorite director Yasujiro Ozu.
This silent comedy looks at the ups and downs of a middle class Japanese family during the Depression. Father had been looking forward to a bonus and promised his son a bicycle. Before he can buy one, he is fired for sticking up for another employee. A wooden scooter is not a substitute for a bicycle in his son’s eyes. Father is a college graduate making him overqualified for most jobs. When Father learns a little humility, he finds help comes from a most unexpected direction.
The film ranges from slapstick to poignancy and everything in between as it captures the experience of children and parents when they face challenges together. There is a moment when the family has reached its lowest ebb and the parents are playing a pat-a-cake game with the children. The husband and wife simply look at each other without saying a word or emoting very much. You can see all the genius that Ozu would develop in that one moment. Highly recommended.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2STlXeSq34
