Early Summer (1951)
"Bakushû" (original title)

A family chooses a match for their 28-year-old daughter Noriko, but she surprisingly has her own plans.

Director:

Yasujirô Ozu

Writers:

Kôgo Noda, Yasujirô Ozu

Stars:

Setsuko Hara, Chishû Ryû, Chikage Awashima

7 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Setsuko Hara	...	Noriko Mamiya
Chishû Ryû	...	Koichi Mamiya
Chikage Awashima	...	Aya Tamura
Kuniko Miyake	...	Fumiko Mamiya
Ichirô Sugai	...	Shukichi Mamiya
Chieko Higashiyama	...	Shige Mamiya
Haruko Sugimura	...	Tami Yabe
Kuniko Igawa	...	Takako
Hiroshi Nihon'yanagi	...	Kenkichi Yabe
Shûji Sano	...	Sotaro Satake
Toyo Takahashi	...	Nobu Tamura (as Toyoko Takahashi)
Seiji Miyaguchi	...	Nishiwaki
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tomoka Hasebe
Kazuyo Itô	...	Mitsuko Yabe
Kokuten Kôdô	...	Old Uncle

Storyline

In postwar Tokyo, this household is loving and serene: older parents, their 28-year-old daughter Noriko, their married son, his devoted wife, and two rascally sons. Their only discontent is Noriko's lack of a husband. Society is changing: she works, she has women friends who tease and argue, her brother sees her independence as impudence, she sees it as normal. When her boss suggests that she marry a 40-year-old bachelor who is his friend, all the members of her family press her to accept. Without seeking their advice, and to their chagrin, Noriko determines her own course of action.

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Plot Keywords:

bachelor | post world war two | marriage proposal | father son relationship | family relationships | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

2 August 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Early Summer

Filming Locations:

Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shôchiku Eiga

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in The Life and Works of Yasujiro Ozu (1983)

User Reviews

Pure genius

To say that a film is only a notch below "Tokyo Story" is one of the highest compliments I can pay. "Early Summer" is just a notch below "Tokyo Story," if that. This film was made a few years earlier than Ozu's masterpiece and remnants of an older style are still present. For one, there are some tracking shots (and even a crane!) in "Early Summer." A few years later Ozu would move on to eliminate camera movement altogether. Ozu's camera movement has been described as clumsy, which can be said of some of the shots in this film. However, some of them are also quite beautiful - the crane shot on the beach and the tracking shot along the wheat field that ends the film are two such examples.

Though the film lacks much of what can be called "plot" - it was around this time that Ozu claimed that plot bored him - it is a nuanced and very beautiful film. It follows the usual routine Ozu story about a daughter who gets married and how it affects the family, but because Ozu and co-scriptwriter Kogo Noda are such masters at character and dialogue, the films always remain fresh. For those who have not experienced the director's work before, this film may be a test of endurance. Stick with it. For those that have come to understand and love Ozu, one of the century's greatest artists in any medium, films like "Early Summer" are truly extraordinary experiences.