I like the little differences/ variations in Ozu, eg in this trilogy the sea ending in Late Spring/ sea beginning in Early Summer, train rides, Ryu as older brother or father etc. Tremendous actor. Love that joyous bike ride in Late Spring, sets us up for romance, but things aren't quite so predictable...

David Bordwell's book Figures Traced in Light excellent for study of Mizo's mise-en-scene- makes point that Hou Hsiao Hsien (obviously indebted to Ozu) has more in common with Mizo than generally thought. And the avoidance of close-ups in Maborosi (another Ozu-indebted masterpiece) may owe something to Mizo too. Audience intimacy has to be earned, as Ton Rayns says. His Mizo favourite is Straits of Love and Hate, notable for lack of close-ups, regretted a little by Mark le Fanu in his book Mizoguchi and Japan- at last one on the great man, in English! His earlier one on Tarkovsky excellent too. He agrees with me on sky-high status of both directors
and Sansho as Mizo's crowning achievement.

Michael Kerpan makes useful observation in Senses of Cinema article on varied camera positions, (if only sparing movement between cuts), with Ozu; may seem obvious but needed saying. More varied than Hou (eg Flowers of Shanghai i thought was too static).

Jeez, what's happened? I was cursing the above message not appearing, so did it again, mindful of Trevor's wish, and it did appear after all!