Die Geschwister Toda (1941)
27KDie Geschwister Toda: Directed by Yasujirô Ozu. With Mieko Takamine, Shin Saburi, Hideo Fujino, Ayako Katsuragi. When the patriarch of the Toda family suddenly dies, his widow discovers that he has left her with nothing but debt and married children who are unwilling to support her–except for her most thoughtful son, just returned from China.
“When a respected businessman dies unexpectedly, his affairs turn out to be in disorder, and his sons sell off most of his goods quickly. His widow, Ayako Katsuragi, and her youngest, unmarried daughter, Mieko Takamine, become houseguests of their siblings…. but they show little filial love. Will Shin Saburi, the wastrel son, inspired by his fatheru0026#39;s death to go off to China and work hard, turn out to be this Japanese version of KING LEARu0026#39;s Cordelia?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOzu hadnu0026#39;t completed a film in four years. When he came back to the studios to make this, his style had shifted and settled. Now, although he still hung his studies of familial relationships on sturdy plots, he had settled on what would become his postwar trademark of long, still shots from a low perspective. Thereu0026#39;s clearly a bit of wartime propaganda in the movie, telling Japanese civilians that thereu0026#39;s endless opportunity in China to get ahead without worrying about getting into those awkward situations of losing face. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOzu would make another movie the following year, then not another until 1947…. first problems with Japanese censors, and then clearing his name with the American Occupation forces. However, here we see the mature Ozu. He was excellent. He would only get better.”
