Regarded by many critics as the greatest of Japanese directors, Yasujiro Ozu (1903-1963) worked for the same company (Shochiku) all his life, learning and developing his craft on the job. His early films include comedies and crime dramas in the Hollywood mould, but Ozu soon forged a unique and highly refined aesthetic.
This short season, which is built around the re-release of digitally restored versions of Tokyo Story (1953) and Late Autumn (1960), concentrates on the director’s mature work. These films have two striking and unwavering characteristics: in subject matter, the rigid adherence to the shomin-geki genre (“common people’s drama”), dealing with the lives and problems of middle-class families; in technique, the stationary camera fixed about three feet above the floor. Despite this rigorous formalism, Ozu’s films are highly emotional and deeply hypnotic cinematic experiences whose exquisite beauty say a lot about Japanese culture and yet have a universal relevance.
