240 - Early Summer

[captainofbeef]

- New high-definition digital transfer, with restored image and sound
- Audio commentary by Japanese-film expert Donald Richie, author of Ozu and A Hundred Years of Japanese Film
- Ozu’s Films from Behind-the-Scenes, a conversation about Ozu and his working methods between child-actor and sound technician Kojiro Suematsu, assistant cameraman Takashi Kawamata, and producer Shizuo Yamanouchi
- Original theatrical trailer
- New and improved English subtitle translation
- Optimal image quality: RSDL dual-layer edition
- Plus: a new essay by David Bordwell, author of Ozu and the Poetics of Cinema, and an article about Ozu by filmmaker Jim Jarmusch

[misterbalco]

One thing about Ozu that I dig is that he doesn't force us into the plot immediately, or for a long time at all. The plot, being of course, is that Noriko would be married instantly to her long time friend Shukichi, without her family's consent. Instead, Ozu lets us know his characters. Ozu gives each and every one of his characters a trait or habit, and gives each character personality. We do know what could be coming in the end, but now, 1 1/2 hours into the film, we sympathize with Noriko, and are saddened with her because of the after effects of her decision. This film, to me, ranks near the top of the Ozu ladder.

I think that we all know how Ozu shoots a film, with some close-ups of the person who is speaking, the 'frame within a frame' and so on. This way, dialogue drives the film, and not plot, and what I explained in the above paragraph begins to work. We always see Noriko smile, and speak with such kind words, that when she cries in the end, it comes almost to a shock, and we cry with her.

See this film people!