Akibiyori (1960)

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Director:

Yasujiro Ozu

Writers:

Ton Satomi (novel)
Kôgo Noda (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

November 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

A widow try to marry off her daughter with the help of her late husband's three friends. |

Plot Keywords:

Literature | 1960s | Mother | Remarriage | Japanese

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Setsuko Hara	...	Akiko Miwa
Yôko Tsukasa	...	Ayako Miwa
Mariko Okada	...	Yukiko Sasaki
Keiji Sada	...	Shotaru Goto
Miyuki Kuwano	...	Michiko
Shinichirô Mikami	...	Koichi
Shin Saburi	...	Soichi Mamiya
Chishu Ryu	...	Shukichi Miwa
Nobuo Nakamura	...	Shuzo Taguchi
Kuniko Miyake	...	Nobuko
Sadako Sawamura	...	Fumiko
Ryuji Kita	...	Seiichiro Hirayama
Fumio Watanabe	...	Tsuneo Sugiyama
Ayako Senno	...	Shigko Takamatsu
Yuriko Tashiro	...	Yoko
Fujio Suga
Toyo Takahashi	...	Wakamatsu's Owner
Mutsuko Sakura
Hisao Toake	...	Tanekichi Kuwata
Yoshie Minami	...	Sakae Kuwata
Shima Iwashita	...	Uketuske no josei
Tsuusai Sugawara	...	Sushi-ya no kyaku
Koji Shitara	...	Kazuo
Masahiko Shimazu	...	Tadao
Norikazu Takeda
Tomoka Hasebe	...	Susumu Hattori
Koji Shirotani
Isao Suenaga
Yukari Yamashina
Aiko Ikumi
Kazuko Mitsukawa
Junko Hara
Tami Yamamoto
Kouhei Kawamura
Shosuke Oni
Yoshikazu Inagawa

Directed by
Yasujiro Ozu

Writing credits
Ton Satomi		(novel)
Kôgo Noda		(screenplay) and
Yasujiro Ozu		(screenplay)

Produced by
Shizuo Yamanouchi	....	producer

Original Music by
Kojun Saitô

Cinematography by
Yuuharu Atsuta

Film Editing by
Yoshiyasu Hamamura

Production Design by
Tatsuo Hamada

Costume Design by
Toshikazu Sugiyama

Makeup Department
Kazuko Sugiyama	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Kouzou Tashiro	....	assistant director

Art Department
Shigeo Hagiwara	....	assistant art director
Osamu Ishii	....	set dresser
Toshio Takahashi	....	set designer

Sound Department
Ei Kaneko	....	recording technician
Yoshisaburo Seno	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Kenzô Ishiwata	....	lighting technician

Editorial Department
Motoshige Oikawa	....	color technician

Production Companies

• Shôchiku Eiga

Distributors

• Shôchiku Eiga (1960) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Shochiku Home Video (2003) (Japan) (DVD)
• Arte Vidéo (2004) (France) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2007) (USA) (DVD) (English subtitles) (as Eclipse from the Criterion Collection)
• New Yorker Films (1973) (USA) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

Late Autumn (USA)

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | UK:PG (2007) | Spain:T

Filming Locations:

Tokyo Tower, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Shôchiku Eiga

Movie Connections:

Remade as Swati (1986)

Soundtrack:

1st Movement

Approachable Ozu masterpiece

Ozu's common themes of ageing, filial ties and modernisation are as present here as in many other of his films. But in this film, as well as the melancholy and gentleness we are accustomed to, there are large doses of comedy which makes this film far more accessible for the uninitiated.

The story centres around a widow (Setsuko Hara) and her daughter (Yoko Tsukasa). The daughter doesn't want to get married because she wants to care for her mother, whereas the mother wants her daughter to marry even though she realises she'll be left alone. So far everything is extremely familiar. Except that in this case the dead husband's friends get involved, trying to find suitors for both mother and daughter, thus creating comical situations, causing family tensions, and finally necessitating for the daughter's friend to step in and sort out the mess.

All in all highly recommended for anyone who wishes to try out this highly prestigious director, and a strong reminder for fans of why we love him so much.