6th HOF-Late Spring

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Nominated By: Sane



I've considered nominating this movie for each of the HoFs I've been a part of and then decided to go with something different but now is the time This is my favourite movie ever and it is, more so than any other movie I've nominated, deserving of being in a Hall of Fame. To me Ozu is one of the only directors who managed to perfect his art. He found his style and what he wanted to make movies about and then worked on making them as good as they could be.

There is a simplicity about Ozu's movies - the focus on family relationships, the static camera shots, etc - but there is also great depth. He delves into personal relationships in a way that explores them like no other director has but also manages to explore a changing country, a changing culture and a changing time. Everything appears simple on the outside but all of his films are very deep if you want them to be.

I love Yasujiro Ozu and I love this film and I hope others enjoy it too.
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Tokyo Story is one of my favorite foreign films of all time, so I am well overdo on giving this film a watch. I'm very glad that this one was nominated.



This really is a great film. I'm glad it's been nominated
Interesting that you seem to be the only one who has seen it as it is relatively widely considered one of the greatest movies of all time and one of the other movies in this "trilogy", Tokyo Story, is one of the more famous Japanese movies.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to finding out what people think of it - happy to see no-one has watched it for the HoF specifically yet. It's good to save the best until last

Also, for anyone who watches it and enjoys it, add The End of Summer, An Autumn Afternoon and, in particular, Late Autumn to your 60s watchlists.



I've seen Late Spring a couple of times before, and watching it again just now it moves me just the same. Like many films from the great Japanese directors it's a masterclass in how to say so much without words. It's so still and reserved, but the performances from Setsuko Hara and Chishu Ryu have a depth about them that you don't need explanation, you can read their emotions and their struggles in their faces.
Thanks Sane for nominating this fine film



I've seen Late Spring a couple of times before, and watching it again just now it moves me just the same. Like many films from the great Japanese directors it's a masterclass in how to say so much without words. It's so still and reserved, but the performances from Setsuko Hara and Chishu Ryu have a depth about them that you don't need explanation, you can read their emotions and their struggles in their faces.
Thanks Sane for nominating this fine film
Probably the thing I'm most excited about with this nomination is not so much people getting to experience a film by my favourite director - it's that people get to experience Ozu, Ryu and, in particular, Hara all at once. Ozu is one of the few directors that had "chemistry" with his actors that can be seen on screen. You almost feel the love for Hara and it translates to the viewer.

One of the good things about many of the great Asian directors is they found their actors and just used them over and over which meant that they developed together and created much more engaging films because of it. Ozu with Hara & Ryu, Kurosawa with Mifune, Zhang Yimou with Gong Li, Wong Kar Wai with Tony Leung & Maggie Cheung and so on. It's probably quite common in European movies as well but I have less experience with those - Godard and Karina comes to mind as does perhaps Fellini and Masina. Some American directors like Scorsese have done this with great results also.

Glad you still like it Christine - it's such a great film



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This is what I wrote about Late Spring in my logbook thread, (without the spoilers).

http://www.movieforums.com/community...88#post1257488

I liked this movie a lot, and I think it's one of the better movies that was nominated in this HoF. The story is simple, yet emotional, and it's very well-written. The characters are all likable people who are easy to relate to, which makes it easy to care about them. The visuals are beautiful, and the movie flows along nicely.

I was a little bit disappointed that we never got to see the possible future husband, who was supposed to look like Gary Cooper. He piqued my curiosity as soon as they started talking about him, and I wanted to see if he really did look like Gary Cooper. However, this did not take anything away from the movie itself.

I liked the ending, and the twist that we learn at the very end, but it was kind of sad to see the father's loneliness at the end, after his daughter got married, and he revealed that his impending marriage was just a ruse to get his daughter to wed.

This is a very good movie, and I'm glad it was nominated in the Hall of Fame.

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I guess I'll be the lone voice of dissent here.

I didn't care for this one. Don't get me wrong, the acting was solid and the film was beautifully shot, but I found myself very much disliking the selfish and childish Noriko and that ruined my enjoyment of the film.




I guess I'll be the lone voice of dissent here.

I didn't care for this one. Don't get me wrong, the acting was solid and the film was beautifully shot, but I found myself very much disliking the selfish and childish Noriko and that ruined my enjoyment of the film.

To me that was the point of the character and her development was part of what makes the movie great. She realised that she was being childish in regards to her feelings on re-marriage and even asked for forgiveness from her father for being selfish. To me the character developed to see her own failings and became a "better person". That kind of character development is what makes her interesting - and compares interestingly to Hara's Norikos in the following two movies - particularly Tokyo Story where she was kind throughout the film.

Whilst Ozu's films appear simple on the surface the characters in them all have their own journey and in this one Noriko's journey made her less selfish ... which ultimately ended up bringing great sadness to her father. It's those things that help to make his movies great IMO.

BTW, when I first read your post I thought it said "childless" and I thought "wow, that's a bit harsh" - glad I re-read it or my reply would have been quite different



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Late Spring

Wow, wow, wow! An exceptional film! Ozu has done it yet again for me. As I already stated, Tokyo Story is one of my favorite foreign films of all time. Ozu manages here to give a story that is rather simple on the surface, such unique depth and emotionally attached you to the characters. Hara and Ryu give excellent performances in perhaps the best father daughter relationship that I have seen come to life on screen. The twist at the end was magnificent, it goes to truly show the bond that the two of them had and that Shukichi knew his daughter inside and out. Ozu is a master of telling a story with a purpose. He makes us think about the personal relationships in our life and what they mean to us while watching his films. While Noriko can be seen as being selfish, in a way I can connect to how she was feeling as it ultimately means that family comes first to her. She just was too insecure to realize that sometimes families can extend and you need to be aware of these situations. Shukichi knew it would be the best for her, as he stated that he is not getting any younger and in a way it seemed like he did not want her to be like himself when she was older. I think in the end Shukichi was able to find solace and comfort in the events that had just occurred. But my goodness, Ozu is the man. I think I liked Tokyo Story a tad more, but Late Spring wasn't far behind. An excellent film and an excellent nomination by Sane. This film has made it mandatory that I get to more Ozu in the very near future.

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Really happy that you liked it Raul. I knew that you liked Tokyo Story but I was unsure if you'd like this as much. You've summed up the character development well and it's a feature of Ozu films. He himself never married and lived with his mother his whole life and I feel like all of his movies are somehow related to that so the parent/child relationships are explored with great depth.

Interestingly there were rumours about him and Hara and I believe she never married either. She's actually still alive I think but has been somewhat of a recluse for the last 50 years.



All this love for Ozu makes me especially upset that I wasn't taken by him when I saw Tokyo Story and Early Summer. I really want to appreciate him but for some reason I have found it a bit difficult. I have nothing but respect for him as an artist and for all intents and purposes I should love his work, I don't get why I don't. Anyway, I'm excited to see this movie, it's another opportunity to try and appreciate Ozu.



Much better experience this time around than I have previously had with Ozu. The framing is something that somewhat bothered me with my first two attempts at Ozu. In the past I always had a hankering to see Ozu move the camera. This time, I kind of accepted that he wouldn’t and tried to appreciate what he was trying to do, and I was able to see the beauty of his composition much, much clearer.

I also liked how Ozu seems to show the beauty of simple life in all its complexity. He shows the struggles and highlights of life, things we all face - the depth of everyday life. Instead of showing the actual wedding, Ozu decides to show the moments leading up to the wedding, and the moments after the wedding. The small moments, even. I think he wanted to capture the importance of those small moments.

My experience with Ozu films has gotten better each time I have seen one, so I can see future viewings leading to even higher ratings. For now, I give Late Spring a
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Really glad you liked it, and I agree that he looks at simple things and still makes them feel important. Next week I'm going to watch another Ozu because he is 2 for 2 with me.



Ozu as a director will be in my top 20 but none of films (including this one, I have seen 7) will be in my top 100. An editing faculty (whom I very much looked up to) of our film school always encouraged us to see more of Ozu...and she kept saying Ozu and Mizoguchi (among the Japanese filmmakers) are more important than Kurosawa or anyone else for that matter...my Ozu days started from there (around 2005)...i have liked all his films, but I am yet to find a masterpiece...I think I am not up to it yet, I need more time and growing up...having said that Late Spring is a very good film (it was my second viewing and it was worth it)

3.5 out of 10
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