'The End of Summer' is most notable for being Yasujiro Ozu's, second only to Akira Kurosawa as far as the best Japanese directors go, penultimate film. The man had an astonishing career that would have been longer than it if he hadn't died too young (don't consider 60 old you see), with an immediately recognisable visual and directing style and one of not many directors to have in my view a bad film among his later work. All being very good to masterpiece.
In my opinion, 'The End of Summer' is one of Ozu's best and one of his most accessible. It may be slight and familiar, but this is a case of that not mattering (though it did matter in a few of his other films where the stories were even slighter and not quite as absorbing) when the characterisation is so rich, the wide range of emotions so varied and how beautifully written it is. To me, the pace was not a problem, it's deliberate as is the case with all Ozu but the characterisations and emotions help never make 'The End of Summer' dull.
Visually, 'The End of Summer' looks great. Loved the delicate use of colour, the case in all of Ozu's six colour films, as well as the simplicity of the photography. Which as ever added so much to the intimacy of the atmosphere and the drama, the still look of the shots being somehow transfixing to watch and the constant height of the angles don't look too limited. If it resorted to being overly-cinematic or gimmicky visually, the mood would have been ruined.
Ozu directs with his usual refinement and understatement, in a way that has never alienated. The music score has some playfulness but also a lush delicacy and nostalgia. The writing is layered and perceptive, with bursts of genuinely funny gentle comedy, thought-provoking commentary that never gets heavy-handed and movingly tender drama. The scenes between the two sisters, one of the most beautifully done sister relationships for any film in my opinion, are very poignant.
Story always engages and entertains and moves too, loved its tactful handling of universal and still relevant themes and subject and do it with such humanity and relatability. One expects that from Ozu, with him being one of the masters of understanding the human condition, because the characters are more than just cliches and such but feel like real people in situations that will resonate with all. If potentially sounding like a broken record, it is hard not to when all of this can be found in much of Ozu's work even when he was not at his very peak. Cannot fault the acting either, with a fair share of familiar faces from being regulars in Ozu's films (Setsuko Hara being the most familiar of them).
All in all, wonderful penultimate film and one of my favourites from a master director. 10/10
In my opinion, 'The End of Summer' is one of Ozu's best and one of his most accessible. It may be slight and familiar, but this is a case of that not mattering (though it did matter in a few of his other films where the stories were even slighter and not quite as absorbing) when the characterisation is so rich, the wide range of emotions so varied and how beautifully written it is. To me, the pace was not a problem, it's deliberate as is the case with all Ozu but the characterisations and emotions help never make 'The End of Summer' dull.
Visually, 'The End of Summer' looks great. Loved the delicate use of colour, the case in all of Ozu's six colour films, as well as the simplicity of the photography. Which as ever added so much to the intimacy of the atmosphere and the drama, the still look of the shots being somehow transfixing to watch and the constant height of the angles don't look too limited. If it resorted to being overly-cinematic or gimmicky visually, the mood would have been ruined.
Ozu directs with his usual refinement and understatement, in a way that has never alienated. The music score has some playfulness but also a lush delicacy and nostalgia. The writing is layered and perceptive, with bursts of genuinely funny gentle comedy, thought-provoking commentary that never gets heavy-handed and movingly tender drama. The scenes between the two sisters, one of the most beautifully done sister relationships for any film in my opinion, are very poignant.
Story always engages and entertains and moves too, loved its tactful handling of universal and still relevant themes and subject and do it with such humanity and relatability. One expects that from Ozu, with him being one of the masters of understanding the human condition, because the characters are more than just cliches and such but feel like real people in situations that will resonate with all. If potentially sounding like a broken record, it is hard not to when all of this can be found in much of Ozu's work even when he was not at his very peak. Cannot fault the acting either, with a fair share of familiar faces from being regulars in Ozu's films (Setsuko Hara being the most familiar of them).
All in all, wonderful penultimate film and one of my favourites from a master director. 10/10