Brandon's #90: Late Spring (Yasujiro Ozu, 1949)

I'm currently reeling from a rough night of hard-drinking. I consider myself a wiser and less headless man in my 33rd year. I've been watching close friends continue down the same path; prolonged adolescence. I'm not knocking it, to each their own, but I certainly enjoy the health perks and not having to send out apologies via text. I have to credit my kids for my newfound sobriety (meaning not getting blackout drunk). Being drunk is hard work. Ozu knew this.

LATE SPRING is a shomingeki family drama following a widower and his daughter in post-war Japan. Their lives are disrupted when meddling Aunt Masa suggests that Norika (the superlative and heartbreaking Setsuko Hara) needs to marry. This sets the simple story in motion, pressure from society to trace lines.

I hate to toss around the word conformity, but it's all over this and Ozu's subsequent films. It's also the story of a fleeting chapter in a father and daughter's lives. It's sad. It's poignant. Ozu knew a thing or two about that pressure, but I'll let Jeff --- our resident Ozu expert --- teach us when he gets around to it. He's a far more eloquent writer anyway.

For me now, I think about my daughter and how hard it'll be to let her go. I guess cherish the time you have with your loved ones. Don't black out on the floor of an apartment and miss half of the day with them. I'm a damn fool.

Ps, the great Claire Denis' 35 SHOTS OF RUM is heavily influenced by LATE SPRING, and it's a masterpiece as well. AND, it was a toss up between this and Ozu's final film, which I love very much.