Tokyo no kôrasu (1931)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Yasujiro Ozu

Writers:

Komatsu Kitamura (adaptation) and
Kôgo Noda (adaptation) ...

Release Date:

December 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

A married Tokyo man faces unemployment after standing up for an older colleague.

Plot Keywords:

Unemployment | Protest | Insurance | Job | Bonus

Cast

Tokihiko Okada	...	Shinji Okajima
Emiko Yagumo	...	Tsuma Sugako (His wife)
Hideo Sugawara	...	Sono Chounan (First Son)
Hideko Takamine	...	Sono Choujo (First Daughter)
Tatsuo Saito	...	Omura Sensei (Teacher)
Chôko Iida	...	Sensei no tusma (Mrs. Omura)
Takeshi Sakamoto	...	Rou-Shain Yamada (Old employee)
Reiko Tani	...	Shachou (Company President)
Kenichi Miyajima	...	Hisho (Secretary)
Isamu Yamaguchi	...	Kaisha no Douryou (An Employee)

Also Known As:

Tokyo Chorus
Tokyo no gassho (Japan) (alternative transliteration)

Country:

Japan

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Company:

Shochiku Kinema

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Ikite wa mita keredo - Ozu Yasujirô den (1983)

Ozu's economic exploration of the Depression

In "Tokyo Chorus", Ozu interplays two major of his long-standing themes - economic status and the everyday realities of family life.

The plot is simple (warning, spoilers): A young salary-man loses his white-collar insurance job trying to cover for an aging colleague. Unfortunately, it is 1931 and the Great Depression means few other employment opportunities. He has difficulty covering the expenses of his family. After misadventures, he runs into his former professor-now-health-food-café-owner who promises him aid if the young man assists him with the café. Part of that assistance is handing out handbills in the street, a major loss of economic and personal status. Unfortunately, his wife sees him and is greatly shamed by the family's loss of status. Gradually, she accepts the need for sacrifice and also begins to assist in the café. During the large opening banquet at the café (guaranting it's success), the old professor receives word that the young man has been offered a teaching post, albeit one in a small and distant town. The movie ends on this hopeful yet downbeat note.

Ozu does not hesitate to attempt to show us the realities of Great Depression unemployment. Indeed, he is more truthful than any comparable American movie of that time or ours. Ozu is willing to attempt to dig into the nexus between employment, self-identity and status that is prevalent throughout capitalist economies. This was his primary theme at the beginning of the Depression, in this movie along with his early masterpiece "I Was Born, But..." and "Where Now are the Dreams of Youth?" and "Passing Fancy". In addition, Ozu also flexes his unparalleled ability with family scenes. Excellent performances from Ozu regulars Tokihiko Okada, Emiko Yagumo, Tatsuo Saito, as well as a winning child performance from future star Hideko Takamine. Watch out for the world's cutest fat baby!