The End of Summer

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Virgo V @vision Dec 29 The End of Summer (Kohayagawa-ke no aki; literally Autumn of the Kohayagawa family) is a 1961 Japanese film co-written and directed by Yasujirō Ozu. It was written by Kogo Noda. It stars Nakamura Ganjiro II, Setsuko Hara and Yoko Tsukasa. It was distributed by Toho Company, Limited. Vision wrote: "Manbei Kohayagawa is the head of a small sake brewery outside Kyoto and has two daughters and a widowed daughter-in-law. His daughter-in-law, Akiko and his younger daughter, Noriko (Yoko Tsukasa), live in Osaka. Akiko helps out at an art gallery and has a son, Minoru. Noriko, unmarried, is an office worker. This is pretty much the entire plot of the film with a slice of life about Japanese families and what they have become. The film stands out as a meditation on death and the death of families in Japan. I would give this film two and a half fries for trying. I felt the best part of the film was near the end when Manbei questions life." See more Thomas V @TomVee 01/04/2023 This is the second of Ozu's great films that I've seen now, and I love this one every bit as much as my first, Tokyo Story. This is another bittersweet, multigenerational story, very simple and economically told, but absolutely beautiful. The addition of color to Ozu's brilliant composition just makes it even better. Very moving film. See more william d @acsdoug 11/24/2022 All the usual Ozu techniques are here, it's just that the story isn't all that interesting. See more nick s @NikitaSbt 04/06/2019 The penultimate film of Ozu follows the mood and most prominent motifs of director's work: the marriages and relationships between generations. This time the action takes places in Kyoto instead of Tokyo. Seeing the locations and interiors of Ozu's shoshimin-geki, the viewers are having a glimpse into the life of a brewery owning extended Kohayagawa family. The majority of Ozu's colour movies are characterized with comprising the bitterness of family dramas and heart-breaking losses with a great sense of humour. The End of Summer is a distinctive example of this concept. In very amusing and warm shots, the director draws the line of aging widow Akiko (last role of Setsuko Hara in Ozu's films) who is reluctant to get married once again despite being approached by the old friends who are trying to arrange her happiness. Her younger sister Noriko (Yoko Tsukasa) meanwhile is also approaching the age to get married, and we are seeing daughter and mother in the thoughts and dialogues related to their marriages. This is very similar to Ozu's previous film Akibiyori (though Hara and Tsukasa played daughter and mother there), but still great. The opening scene when one of Akiko's old friends is trying to introduce her to his other friend who is interested in marrying her is so funny! The men in their late 40-s act pretty much like adolescents when it comes to seeing a woman they admire. And this is something Ozu addresses his humour to. What makes The End of Summer to be very entertaining and new is the story of Kohayagawa family's patriarch Manbei. A widowed old-man has preserved childish attitude and behaviour towards life and doesn't really seem to care about the family brewery business and any other matters. Moreover, he often sneaks out of the house to see his old mistress. The events irritate his oldest daughter Fumiko (Michiyo Aratama) living with him who confronts her father. It is brilliant to see this gap of generations in their iteration. The daughter is not able to take into consideration that the old man still has his own life to enjoy and she keeps scolding him. Manbei's daughter-in-law Akiko is more tolerant, but she is certainly not that close to Manbei, as Fumiko. The heart attack takes the life of Manbei suddenly, just like in 1942 film Chichi Akiri. With this death, we see that the children are too late to understand their father and the way he wanted to spend his last years particularly. It's a simple, but touching tragedy as there is nothing to be done now since the patriarch is already deceased. As for Akiko, she ends up deciding not to marry again. She had already tested this water not to step into again. Yet she encourages her younger sister to dismiss an arranged marriage proposal she received, in order to leave Kyoto for Sapporo where the young man she loves resides. Possible happiness of Noriko is something Akiko is actually concerned about. Arranging a young sister's life is what can make her pleased. It's bitter to see her not having any hopes for her own future, but that's the life and gap of generations from Ozu's films. The End of Summer is a solid and beautiful addition to the collection of Yasujiro Ozu's family dramas. Serious but very light, the penultimate film of the Japanese master colours amazed with its world of simple and important scenes from the family's life. Just as always, Setsuko Hara is brilliant in this role showing the co-existing bitterness and humour with her half-smile. See more 02/18/2016 "It's as if my glorious life was but a dream within a dream" See more s r @ScottR 01/16/2016 A good pensive film on Japanese society. Beautifully presented, a little slow, but still poignant and endearing. See more Read all reviews

The End of Summer

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