Sôshun (1956)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 144 minuten
Alternative titles: Early Spring / 早春
Country:
Japan
Directed by: Yasujirô Ozu
Stars: Chikage Awashima, Takako Fujino and Ryō Ikebe
IMDb score:
7,7 (4.235)
Releasedate: 29 January 1956
This movie is not available on US streaming services.
Sôshun plot
Tired of the dull predictability of his job and his marriage to Masako, Sugiyama, a middle-aged office worker, becomes involved in a brief affair with the office flirt nicknamed Kingyo, Goldfish. Set in the westernized Tokyo of 1956, this film aptly portrays office life and the restless despair it can evoke.
Actors and actresses
Masako Sugiyama
Shôji Sugiyama
Terumi Aoki
Sakamoto
Chiyo Kaneko
Yukiko Kawai
Kiichi Onodera
Tamako Tamura
Taizo Aoki
Koichi Kitagawa
Reviews & comments
Spetie
-
- 38871 messages
- 8266 votes
Strong film by Ozu, which has an interesting subject, which is still very topical. Working a lot and earning a lot of money sounds nice, but if the balance between work and private life is not good, then it is difficult to become happy in life.
Early Spring is apparently less well-known, but that doesn't make it a lesser film. In it, Ozu sketches a picture of post-war Japan. It is a time when Japan is still recovering. The youth wants to think modern, but the elderly cling to their classical habits, something that is also timeless. The tone is somewhat more somber than usual and it is also slightly less light-hearted than his previous films. Of Ozu's work, only Tokyo Twilight, made after it, is even darker in tone.
The acting is more than good. Chikage Awashima plays a great lead role and I am also always very charmed by Chishu Ryu. Whether he plays a lead role or a smaller role like here, he always does an excellent job. The characters are well developed and the camera work is fine. It is a captivating film about the problems of a middle class family, which also lends itself well to a remake.
Ozu is and remains a great filmmaker.
4.0*
Translated from Dutch · View original
Film Pegasus (moderator films)
-
- 31191 messages
- 5473 votes
Ozu's films remain wonderful. I saw the Indian film Pather Panchali just before this, which I liked much less and which seemed much busier because of Shankar's music. Time for an Ozu, in which peace returns. In his films he discreetly places the camera as a witness, as if he does not want to disturb the life that is taking place in the picture. The camera is also always in the ideal place so that you get a beautiful image of the scene. With the atmospheric music in the background you are completely present in the company.
Early Spring is not my first Ozu, so sometimes I'm afraid that I've just seen all those strong films of his and it can only get worse. But Early Spring still reaches a high level. Not the best of the series, but a characterful picture in which you see the main characters evolve. In the film we follow a couple with marital problems. They seem to grow more and more apart, although the circumstances around them do play a role in how things will continue and which choices are (have to be) made. With a time in the background in which the war is not long behind them and the echo of it still resounds. But at the same time they live in a new, more Western time. Which also has an influence on the lives of the people.
Translated from Dutch · View original
mjk87 (moderator films)
-
- 14614 messages
- 4563 votes
Content-wise especially strong, with the emerging Western society in post-war Japan. A very human drama of all times with a fascinating time and environment as a backdrop. So there is a lot to see. Again an excellent pace (rippling but you don't feel those 140 minutes anywhere) and many beautiful shots. Often with almost overexposed people that provides a strong effect but also some beautiful pictures of modern society such as those chimneys at the end or the new stone office buildings (in contrast to the still traditional houses).
Nevertheless, not a film that really grabs me. The film remains somewhat distant, something I often have with the more serious Ozu's. I prefer his somewhat lighter films than his heavier dramas that are not really convincing on an emotional level. Clearly more a film for the mind than the heart but still certainly a solid pass. 3.5*.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Trending Movies
Trending Shows
Corporate & Media
Realtimes Network
Innovatieweg 20C
7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31(315)-764002
