Daily Movie Rec 6/8/2023

Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family (1941)

"Listen dear, as people grow old, they have their own joy, don't you think?"

Directed by: Yasujirô Ozu

Cinematography by: Yûharu Atsuta

Country: Japan

Genre: Drama

Plot:

Following the death of the family patriarch, the Toda family's widowed mother is treated as a burden by a number of her children and their partners.

Reasons to watch:

Even for the peaceful and quaint Ozu, this is a very low-key slice-of-life domestic drama with conflict that rarely rises above rudeness and spirited disagreements and themes that are basically, "Sometimes your kids and the people they marry can be dicks." It's still Ozu though, so its serenity is magnetic, and it makes for a thoroughly pleasant Sunday morning watch with cup of coffee in hand.

Where to watch:

The Criterion Channel