Daily Movie Rec 4/14/202

The Only Son (1936)

"In all these years, I've never once given up hope."

Directed by: Yasujirô Ozu

Cinematography by: Shôjirô Sugimoto

Country: Japan

Genre: Drama

Plot:

A young man is self-conscious about an unplanned visit from his impoverished rural mother who made considerable sacrifices to pay for his schooling in Tokyo.

Reasons to watch:

Ozu’s first sound film is a brilliant transition; a beautiful, serene, heartfelt story about a parent’s love, with drama that feels so intense even with how light and quiet it is. The director’s sublimely poetic film grammar that would make him so revered reveals itself in his continued focus on inanimate details, which creates an atmosphere of intimate lyricism. One of cinema’s finest impressionists.

Where to watch:

The Criterion Channel