The title would today suggest something entirely different, but this is an early Ozu comedy with an entirely different point. Tokihiko Okada is graduating from college, but no employer wants to hire some one with a full, bushy beard, which he wears, he explains, like Abraham Lincoln, to keep the ladies away. However, after he rescues Hiroko Kawasaki from a street gang, she advises him in a friendly fashion that the beard is getting in the way of his job-hunting.... so he shaves it, gets a job and suddenly, he is the object of desire of Miss Kawasaki -- whom he likes -- but also a predatory rich girl and a gangster's moll.
It's a thoroughly Lubitschian set-up, but while Ozu in this period is an international talent -- the inevitable movie poster on display is from the Laurel & Hardy version of THE DEVIL'S BROTHER -- the philosophical impulse is far more reminiscent of his previous year's effort, WALK CHEERFULLY.
The print I saw was not in good condition and the notes indicated that sections were missing. Certainly, some transitions were a bit abrupt, although that might be attributable to differences in elements of comic timing between nations. The result is that while this is a thoroughly enjoyable piece, it's by no means anything special.
It's a thoroughly Lubitschian set-up, but while Ozu in this period is an international talent -- the inevitable movie poster on display is from the Laurel & Hardy version of THE DEVIL'S BROTHER -- the philosophical impulse is far more reminiscent of his previous year's effort, WALK CHEERFULLY.
The print I saw was not in good condition and the notes indicated that sections were missing. Certainly, some transitions were a bit abrupt, although that might be attributable to differences in elements of comic timing between nations. The result is that while this is a thoroughly enjoyable piece, it's by no means anything special.
