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Early Summer (The Criterion Collection)

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The more Ozu films I watch, the more I fall in love with the simplicity and elegance of his storytelling. Like all his work, "Early Summer" ("Bakushu") is a beautiful snapshot of the human experience, in this case a 28-year old woman being pressured by her family to marry and balancing her own happiness with the happiness of those around her.

The tone of the film, like the weather in the title, is light and happy like a soft gentle early summer breeze. Whimsical and joyful, even while dealing with a potentially heavy subject.

Arranged marriages (O-Miyai) are still practiced in Japan today and were much more common when "Early Summer" was made in 1951. In the cases of women like Noriko (Setsuko Hara), who at 28 would be considered almost an old maid, if she hasn't found a love-match by now, it is best to arrange a marriage before she becomes too old for anyone to take her. However, Noriko is a modern woman, with ideas for her own happiness as her family will soon find out.

Ozu's simplicity is never boring, and Setsuko Hara is so completely charming that her smile can carry any story. "Early Summer" utilizes many of Ozu's principle actors, and Chishu Ryu is on hand as Noriko's older brother Koichi, although he would play her father two years later in "Tokyo Story."

Criterion's presentation of "Early Summer" is every bit the jewel you would expect it to be, with Ozu-expert Donald Richie supplying the commentary track, and a documentary called "Ozu Films from Behind-the-Scenes" detailing his working methods and camera techniques.

few films have moved me as much as this one, my third and favorite ozu. the other reviewers have touched on most everything, i'll only say that this film has much more humor than i expected and for much of the movie i was either smiling or out-right laughing. the single girls vs. the married women, the brother spying on the conversation between his wife and sister, the cake scene (i smiled the whole time, then laughed), even the bratty kids. i could go on for a while. but this film also made me cry (you can probably guess where). so many beautiful scenes, quiet, pure acting, long shots of moving and subtle scenery. i had given up on showing ozu to others, because it's usually seen as boring and nothing happening, but this movie has put the impetus in me once again. i want to force everyone i know to watch it!

Early Summer is a variation on a seemingly perennial Ozu theme, namely, a family trying to arrange a marriage for a daughter and the daughter showing she has a mind of her own. The idea of an arranged marriage ("omiai" in Japanese) may seem strange to Western viewers. But they were quite common in Japan when this movie was made. The film centers around the character Noriko, played by Setsuko Hara (who interestingly was called the "eternal virgin" by her fans). Noriko is 28 and still single. Her boss finds a potential husband and her family gets all excited. But Noriko balks at the arranged marriage. What she eventually decides to do will likely surprise you. Keep in mind that Japan was in a period of transition when Early Summer was made. Many of the old ways, including arranged marriages, were being challenged by the younger generation.

What I enjoy most about watching this and other Ozu films is the focus on character rather than plot. We really get to know the people in this movie, as if they were members of our own family. Setsuko Hara gives an outstanding performance as the sweet but rebellious Noriko. This film is a good introduction to Ozu for people who've never seen any of his movies.

UPDATE: People who may have been hesitant to purchase this movie because it's only on VHS will be pleased to know that Criterion has acquired the rights to several Ozu classics, including Early Summer, Tokyo Story and Floating Weeds. According to a recent Criterion press release, the first DVD release of these titles is scheduled for the fall of 2003.

Having just enjoyed the quiet brilliance of Yasujiro Ozu's "Tokyo Monogatari (Tokyo Story)" for the first time last week, I was immediately drawn to another Ozu film released by the Criterion Collection last year, 1951's "Bakushu (Early Summer)". Both movies are part of his classic Noriko trilogy which uses many of the same actors playing characters with the same names but in different roles. Consequently, the great Setsuko Hara portrays a young woman named Noriko in both movies, but this time, she is the liberated daughter (rather than the forlorn daughter-in-law) and also the focal point of the story (rather than the aged parents in "Tokyo Story").

The musical chairs continue with Chishu Ryu playing his real age as Noriko's strong-willed brother Koichi (rather than the resigned grandfather) and Haruko Sugimura playing older as neighbor Tomi, the mother of Noriko's prospective fiancee (versus the conniving daughter Shige). Chieko Higashiyama still plays the grandmother, but her name is not Tomi but Shige, and her husband Shukishi is portrayed by Ichiro Sugai. It's only confusing if you are looking for some kind of plot continuity between the films, but Ozu is primarily interested in reinforcing similar themes of the evolving family unit in post-WWII Japan. This time, he does it in a more comic, sometimes even ribald fashion, and while it doesn't resonate quite as deeply as "Tokyo Story", "Early Summer" is full of Ozu's shrewd observations and insights that make it emotionally affecting, especially as the story takes a surprise turn toward the end.

The story here centers on the Mamiya family, who are trying to find a suitable husband for 28-year old single daughter Noriko. As typical in Japanese culture, several generations live together under one roof, and a frequent subject of conversation is Noriko's lack of a husband. However, she is a member of the new postwar breed of Japanese women. She dresses almost exclusively in Western clothes and holds down an administrative position in an office in the heart of Tokyo. In spirit, Noriko bears a strong resemblance to Elizabeth Bennett in Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice", a point raised by film historian Donald Richie on his informative commentary. She loves to go to dinner with her girlfriends. Of the four friends, two are married and two are unmarried. In a particularly amusing scene, the four have a spirited debate about the pros and cons of married life versus single life.

Noriko is happy with her life as it is and doesn't seem to be too concerned with changing it anytime soon. Nonetheless, the family attempts to fix Noriko up with a successful, 40-year old business associate of her boss. Although polite about the matchmaking effort, she becomes more interested in her neighbor, an old classmate now widowed and left alone with a small daughter and his mother. Noriko prefers that her potential husband is an old friend and that they will slip into their new romantic relationship more easily than two complete strangers. The bigger problem, though, is that she makes her decision without consulting with her family and that's where the familial conflict arises.

Hara continues to be a revelation to me, a beautiful, charismatic actress who radiates goodness and a sense of cunning mischief that is entrancing. The supporting performances are excellent with Sugimura again a standout in a surprising turn as the mother grateful to Noriko for her decision to marry her son Kenkichi. Kuniko Miyake has a bigger, more dimensional role here than in "Tokyo Story", playing yet again the brother's wife Fumiko. She and Hara have a particularly lovely scene on the beach at the end of the film, and the two have a pretty funny scene where they hide their clandestine cake slices from the somnambulant child.

Chikage Awashima portrays Noriko's best friend Aya with feisty charm, goading Noriko to see the man she passed up, impersonating a country bumpkin to preview Noriko's new married life and trading innuendo-heavy barbs with Noriko's politically incorrect boss. This latter interchange is surprisingly adult for 1951, as they even joke that Noriko may be a lesbian for waiting so long to get married. The children play more prominent roles here, and Ozu really plays up their bratty insubordination as they hurl inappropriate epithets when they don't get their way, though their running away from home is the catalyst for Noriko to become attracted to Kenkichi.

Yuuharu Atsuta provides the beautiful cinematography, which is gratefully captured in a fairly pristine print of the film, though I have to believe Ozu is the one most responsible for the simple yet powerful scene compositions. His now familiar low-to-the ground camera angles are used consistently in the film to replicate the perspective of someone sitting on a tatami mat. Lighter and more loosely structured than "Tokyo Story", "Early Summer" is essential viewing for Ozu aficionados and anyone interested in post-WWII Japanese society. Along with Richie's thorough commentary, the DVD package also includes a 47-minute documentary, "Ozu's Films From Behind the Scenes", which includes a table discussion with Ozu's longtime cameraman Takashi Kawamata, his sound and editing assistant Kojiro Suematsu and producer Shizuo Yamanouchi who produced six Ozu films.

Early Summer is set in post-war Japan where three generations of the Mamiya family share space under the same roof. The film opens intriguingly with a regular morning with symbolic shots of the Mamiya house with singing birds in birdcages and the morning duties of the family which suggests the natural rang order of the family. These two cinematic elements play a big role in the overall cinematic experience as it refers to duty, tradition, and other values of a Japanese family. The Mamiya's are the middle of a generational crisis influenced by peers, new cultures, and the aftermath of a war, which will have a significant effect on old Japanese traditions and values.

The story is focused on Noriko, a 28-year-old daughter, who the rest of the family is lightheartedly implying is one of those women that never wants to get married. Yet, the notion that Noriko will not get married is worrisome for the Mamiya family as it is tradition to marry and the older she gets the harder it will be for her to find a suitable husband that the family will approve of. The approval of the family is crucial as it will reflect on the parents position in the society as it is important to marry someone of higher status. Noriko is also a woman of her time as she changes with the times and has a job that helps support the family. Her independence is considered by family members as disrespectful towards the old traditions, and it also worries the family. Despite what others think Noriko wanders her own way with a good spirit, which seems to reflect upon those around her.

Osu created a brilliant film when he worked on Early Summer in the early 50s as he captures the societal changes within Japan through one single family. The changes that Ozu presents are sincere as they are not always pleasant, yet the changes will help the people grow in several different ways. It is within the change that the key to the story rests as it presents a thick fabric of artistry with numerous thoughts that will hopefully open several doors to debate. Early Summer is a cinematic event of historical proportions that will remain influential for many years to come.

Early Summer is my personal favorite among the three confirmed classics of Ozu (the other two being Late Spring and Tokyo Story), hence I am particularly pleased to get this meticulously re-mastered copy, both in sound and visuals. I enjoyed listening to the commentary by Donald Richie, which is interesting. The surprise in the package being Jim Jarmusch's essay, which is included in the pamphlet. It adds a new dimenson to my appreciation of the film, and as a bonus, got a better understanding of Jim Jasrmusch's own films as well.

Ozu is a aquired taste to be sure. If you just open yourself to the quiet beauty of the film, you will be rewarded.

The "trancendent moment" here is the future mother-in-law arranging the marriage directly with Noriko. She regains her social position, makes her family whole, makes a mother for her grandaughter and a wife for her still greiving son, by breaking through the codes of politeness and indirectness.

It is a moment of modernity in a culture caught in-between. It is a moment of total change for perhaps a dozen people, but it is not a crisis or a catharsis - just the opposite.

Films do not have to Thrill and Manipulate (E.T. anyone?) to have a lasting profound effect on your life. Some great art is almost invisible......

The movie is powerful, touching and funny all at the same time. The commentary is both interesting and very detailed, allowing us to get even more out of the movie by giving us information about the film, the actors and director. The story is simple - the family is trying to find a husband for the daughter. Noriko ends up finding one on her own (a friend who is also a doctor) and, by doing so without the family's input, pulls the family apart. In the 1950s, when people got married, the wife ended up (much of the time) joining the household of the husband's side of the family. Everything was carefully planned and families got bigger - not smaller. The idea of the next generation LEAVING the house (or going to another town) is not a Japanese one at the time and, therefore, what seems normal to us (or to the Japanese now) was heart breaking and sad to the movie-goers in the 1950s. This movie is about a family falling apart not about marriage. Lots of extras, including a behind-the-scenes feature and original trailer.

EARLY SUMMER is not Ozu's greatest film, it is merely my personal favorite. The reason is simple: Noriko Mamiya, played by the incandescent Setsuko Hara, is one of the most fascinating, perverse, and peculiar female characters in all of world cinema. Every viewing of EARLY SUMMER peels away new layers of her guilelessness, revealing more and more quiet audacity.

Noriko lives with her brother (Koichi), his wife, her elderly parents, and her brother's bratty young sons. She dresses in simple western styles and works as a typist. Koichi is an imperious man with old-fashioned ideas about the role of women, and he intimidates the whole family. Except Noriko. Not that she is ever defiant towards him, she has simply mastered the art of smiling deferentially and continuing along her own inscrutable path in life.

Her family, friends, neighbors, and professional associates all take note of her age (28!) and begin to pester her about getting married before it is too late: Noriko smiles deferentially at every suggestion, insinuation, or act of coercion. There is even some speculation that she might be a lesbian.

One member of her family is unable to advise Noriko, and that is Shoji, her older brother who has been M. I. A. since the war and is presumed (by any reasonable standard) to be dead. Ozu is a master of evoking what is out of frame, continually reminding us that there is an unseen world that interacts with what he allows us to see. The absent and lovingly remembered Shoji turns out to be a force that points Mamiya to her groom, a man who unites the family in his absolute unsuitability for Noriko. In my favorite scene, Noriko denies to her friend Aya that she is in love with her intended--and then describes her exact feelings for him in words that perfectly define the phenomenon of being in love.

The new subtitles by Donald Ritchie are only at times preferable to the ones on older prints. On the one hand, the bawdiness of some of the dialogue is much more clear in Ritchie's translation, but on the other hand the titles have become far more prosaic. Sadly, the two best lines in the film have had all the poetry sucked out of them in this version. I will give you the original translations, and you can read Ritchie's for yourself. When Koichi finds his two sons abusing a loaf of bread, the translation of his outburst used to read, "Don't kick food!"

Lastly, when the two elderly Mamiyas share a sandwich in a park, they see a toy balloon floating off into the sky. In a perfect distillation of Yasujiro Ozu's ability to draw our attention to what is off screen, the husband's line of dialogue used to be, "Somewhere a child is crying." Maybe Ritchie's is more accurate, but that was one line he should never have touched.

Early Summer is a classic Ozu piece, and will probably rank as one of his best works. A sensitively rendered portrait of an "old maid" under severe pressure from her family to get married, Setsuko Hara gives a heartbreaking performance in this beautiful, subtle, elegant and witty piece set in post-world war II Japan. Although the film does suffer from a few editing problems, it represents the world's greatest humanist director at the peak of his craft, producing a lovely, stirring, emotional drama. An absolute must for Ozu fans, and for all others, just check this one out (much cheaper than all the New Yorker Ozu videos)first to see what you are missing. Superb!