Tokyo Story
An old couple visit their children and grandchildren in the city but receives little attention.
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An elderly couple comes to Tokyo to visit their children, but their busy children perceive their visit as burdensome and gradually become less attentive to their care. Through this mundane narrative, Tokyo Story unveils the complexities of family dynamics. In the early part of the film, the grandmother relishes a rare moment of being alone with her grandson. She affectionately asks him about his aspirations for the future, but he remains focused on playing by himself and does not respond. The grandmother then bitterly muses, “What are you going to be when you grow up? A doctor like your father? By the time you become a doctor, I wonder if I'll still be here.” In this scene, the two are not shown in the same frame. Instead, they only appear together in a distant two-shot, from the perspective of the grandfather watching them from inside the house. Ozu Yasujiro’s composed and contemplative perspective on the cycle of life and death is particularly evident in everyday scenes like this. The film, sensitively observing Japan’s changing society in the 1950s after the war, continues to be hailed as one of the greatest films in cinematic history by critics worldwide. Its lasting resonance lies in its universal exploration of the themes of relationships, life, and death, which transcend time and generations. (HUR Jinho)
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Atnine Film Co., Ltd.⎜jhjeong@at9film.com
OZU Yasujiro
