back

Tokyo Boshoku

Tokyo Twilight | Tokio in der Dämmerung
Berlinale Classics 2018
© 1957/2017 Shochiku Co., Ltd.
Their mother abandoned sisters Takako and Akiko a long time ago, and their father has had to raise his two daughters alone. Now that they are grown, the respected businessman recognises how unhappy they are. After a fight with her alcoholic husband, Takako returns to live with her father. Her younger sister Akiko, who yearns for a different life, is also part of the household. Akiko has an affair with student Ken, a drifter who spends his time gambling. When she gets pregnant, he cuts her off. When she goes looking for him at a mah-jongg parlour, she meets a woman who knows things about Akiko’s childhood that only a mother could … The theme of the end of a family living together is one that Japanese directing maestro Yasujiro Ozu often reworks, and here he has given it a dramatic and sombre twist. In a barren, cold Tokyo, a young woman is broken by her father’s harsh nature and silence. This largely-unknown work is considered Ozu’s darkest post-war film. – World premiere of the digitally restored version in 4K DCP.
by Yasujiro Ozu
with Setsuko Hara, Ineko Arima, Chishu Ryu, Isuzu Yamada, Masami Taura, Haruko Sugimura, So Yamamura Japan 1957 Japanese 140’ Black/White Digitally restored version 2017

With

  • Setsuko Hara
  • Ineko Arima
  • Chishu Ryu
  • Isuzu Yamada
  • Masami Taura
  • Haruko Sugimura
  • So Yamamura

Crew

Director Yasujiro Ozu
Screenplay Kogo Noda, Yasujiro Ozu
Cinematography Yuharu Atsuta
Editing Yoshiyasu Hamamura
Music Takanobu Saito
Sound Yoshisaburo Senoo
Art Director Tatsuo Hamada
Producer Shizuo Yamanouchi

World Sales

Shochiku Co., Ltd.

http://www.shochikufilms.com http://www.shochikufilms.com

Produced by

Shochiku Co., Ltd.

http://www.shochikufilms.com http://www.shochikufilms.com

Additional information

Restoration by
Shochiku MediaWorX Inc., Tokyo; Japan

Restoration conducted by IMAGICA Corp., Tokyo; Japan and TOKYO LABORATORY LTD., Tokyo; Japan
Under the supervision of Shizuo Yamanouchi, Takashi Kawamata, Masashi Chikamori and Kougi Tanaka

Photos

Yasujiro Ozu

Born in 1903, died in 1963. He grew up in Tokyo and went to school in Matsuzaka, where he also worked as a teaching assistant at a village school. In 1923, he began working as an assistant cameraman for the Shochiku film company. He later became an assistant director and, in 1927, a director for the company, which produced 51 of his 54 films. He started with comedies and moved on to quiet dramas about family and society. His minimalist, austere style inspired younger directors such as Wim Wenders and Aki Kaurismäki.

Filmography (selection)

1927 Zange no yaiba 1931 Tokyo no gassho 1934 Ukigusa monogatari 1935 Tokyo no yado 1949 Banshun 1953 Tokyo monogatari 1957 Tokyo boshuko 1958 Hinganbana 1959 Ukigusa 1962 Sanma no aji

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2018