Have you seen Tokyo Story (1953)?
Yes
No
Haven’t even heard of this movie
[Note: This poll is another re-do of an older poll, as the last poll for it received less than 2,000 votes.]
seen from United States
seen from China

seen from United States
seen from Vietnam
seen from China
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Brazil
seen from United States
seen from Australia

seen from China
seen from Algeria
seen from Netherlands

seen from Malaysia
seen from Indonesia
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from Taiwan

seen from Russia
seen from Netherlands
seen from United States
Have you seen Tokyo Story (1953)?
Yes
No
Haven’t even heard of this movie
[Note: This poll is another re-do of an older poll, as the last poll for it received less than 2,000 votes.]
東京物語 | Tokyo Story (1953) dir. Yasujirō Ozu cine. Yûharu Atsuta
Horror Movie of the day: Kwaidan (1964)
What are ghosts? How do they manifest when show up? It could be in the guilt of a samurai, who left his wife in order to advance his position by remarrying to the daughter of an important family only to try and come back to his lost love. It could be a woodcutter's fear after surviving an encounter with the Yuki Onna, woman of snow, in the condition he keeps this encounter to himself. Maybe it's in the strange aura the Emperor has when asking a blind musician to perform for him in an univiting court. Or maybe, they could be found in the distorted reflection a warrior sees in his cup of tea. These are the stories from the beyond.
Directed by Masaki Kobayashi and based on a collection of traditional stories compilled by Lafcadio Hearn, this is arguably still the ultimate ghost anthology to ever come out of Japan. It quite intelligently favors the psychological angle for the characters who experience the stories, which enhances the illogic and fright of the supernatural terrors they face while also landing them exquisite thematic depth. It's a set of four separate strong scripts that could survive even with lesser visuals.
That isn't to say the movie isn't a visual treat, however. With a lavish production design, it isn't afraid of playing loose with the visual realism where it finds it fitting, using fairly obvious but strongly expressionistic set designs where the backgrounds are clearly painted. And since all these are traditional folkloric stories, this aesthetic qurik lends them a theatre-like quality as if you were watching a Noh play, while also having some absolutely STELLAR cinematography and a breathtaking color palette that fits the mood of each story.
It's on the long end with a little over three hours of runtime, but this just means every story gets it's proper due and it's all the more worthy for it. This isn't just a horror classic, it's an absolute must watch for any enthusiast of the art of cinema.
Masahiro Shinoda
- The Petrified Forest
1973
“This place is meant for the younger generation.”
Tokyo Story (1953) Directed by Yasujirō Ozu Cinematography by Yūharu Atsuta
Mother (1963)
母 Mother (1963) directed by Kaneto Shindō cinematography by Kiyomi Kuroda
Early Summer / Bakushū (1951, Yasujirō Ozu)
麦秋 (小津安二郎)
5/23/21