Café Lumière (2003)

The story revolves around Yoko Inoue, a pregnant woman in search for a cafe that's frequented by a Taiwanese composer whose life she is researching.

Director:

Hsiao-Hsien Hou

Writers:

Hsiao-Hsien Hou (screenplay), T'ien-wen Chu (screenplay)

Stars:

Yo Hitoto, Tadanobu Asano, Masato Hagiwara

3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Yo Hitoto	...	Yôko
Tadanobu Asano	...	Hajime Takeuchi
Masato Hagiwara	...	Seiji
Kimiko Yo	...	Yôko no keiba
Nenji Kobayashi	...	Yôko no otôsan
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Keiichi Asada
Yukio Endô
Yôko Hoshi
Mikiko Kakizawa
Hiroko Kumada
Kikutarô Mitobe
Sumiko Mitobe
Masaru Motegi
Hiroko Ninomiya
Yasuko Ogata

Storyline

The story revolves around Yoko Inoue, a pregnant woman in search for a cafe that's frequented by a Taiwanese composer whose life she is researching.

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Plot Keywords:

no opening credits | urban setting | telephone call | family relationships | train | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Japan Taiwan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

8 December 2004 (France)

Also Known As:

Café Lumière

Filming Locations:

Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shochiku Company, Asahi Shimbun, Sumitomo Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was first conceived as a three-part anthology film, each segment directed by a different person, to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the great Japanese director Yasujirô Ozu. However, the other two directors dropped out before filming started, and Hou decided to make the entire film himself.

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Soundtracks

Maggio Suite
Composed by Wen Ye Jiang
Performed by J. Y. Song

User Reviews

A small piece

Café Lumiere is a joyful slice, a little piece, which is both satisfying and leaves you wanting to move on to another day within the context of the movie. The story and characters are inconsequential, this is relayed through long shots, or entire scenes with the character's back facing the camera, or the mumbled dialog. What is relevant is the light, sound movement, ordinary experience of existence.

Yasurjiro Ozu the brilliant director who managed to give a entire sensibility to the mundane and static pedestrian point of view, is present here, but the light and tone of this movie is all about everyday Japan and its timeless pace. The essence of this film is it's universality and regard for the human experience. It is brilliant and fantastic as a reflection of the world at large and as a microcosm.