Bakush (1951) Early Summer 

Directed by Yasujiro Ozu

Starring Setsuko Hara, Chishu Ryu

Now this is bizarre, you make three unconnected films, each with the same actress playing a character whose name each time happens to be Noriko. To complicate matters even more, the actor who played her father in Late Spring is the same actor who plays her older brother in Early Summer!

Three generations of a family live in the same household on the outskirts of Tokyo, parents, their adult son and daughter, their daughter in law and two grandsons. Despite the fact that the son is a doctor and their daughter Noriko is a P.A money always seems to be tight and after a visit from an elderly uncle the parents decide that once Noriko is married off theyll retire to a small town and leave the house in the care of the son and his family. Efforts are made to find a match for Noriko but in the end and without her familys consent she finds her own future husband.

A very simple plot but there are problems compared with the other two Noriko films (Late Spring and Tokyo Story), things just dont seem to gel as well, there are too many central characters vying for attention and most without enough depth. A lot of the more interesting characters are on the sidelines; the uncle who pretends to be deaf when confronted with the grandchildren. The two grandsons, the elder is very abrupt and is an overpowering influence on the younger one. Even Noriko herself doesnt seem that strong a character until towards the end when she takes her future into her own hands in defiance of her brother and parents who under normal practise would have more say in her marriage plans. 

If anything, that is the message of the film, women can become empowered and make their own choices, a message that is just as potent in Japanese society today as it was in 1951.

I lost count of the number of times the camera moved in Early Summer, quite an extraordinary event in any of Ozus films.

A classic ensemble piece with some nice comedic touches, just not up there with the best.

Cheers Trev

BBFC rated PG.