Yasujiro Ozu - Dekigokoro aka Passing Fancy (1933)

Inspired partly by King Vidor's The Champ, this silent 1933 masterpiece by Yasujiro Ozu takes place in a Tokyo slum, where a slow-witted, good-hearted, heavy-drinking day laborer (Takeshi Sakamoto) tries to deal with his rebellious son (Tokkan Kozo). It opens with one of the funniest stretches of slapstick Ozu ever filmed, though the remainder is colored by Chaplinesque pathos. As the loving and lovable father, Sakamoto creates one of the most complex characters in Japanese cinema, and Kozo (who played the younger brother in I Was Born, But...) isn't far behind. The milieu they inhabit is perfectly realized, making this a pinnacle in Ozu's career. (Jonathan Rosenbaum)





While I was growing up in Fukagawa, there was a good-natured lay-about who frequented our house. He became my model for Kihachi. Since Ikeda Tadao had also come across many such fellows in Okachimachi, we delineated his character together. There's a scene in which Kihachi's son gets teased by his classmates because his father is always running off to flirt with a girl he fancies. When the boy comes home from school, he ruins Kihachi's favorite plant. When Kihachi returns all flustered after seeing his dream girl, his glee turns to anger, and he gives his son a good thrashing. The boy hits back and the two get into a big scuffle. Eventually, Kihachi cools down and so does his son, who then bursts into tears. If the negatives still exists, I'd love to watch that scene again. (Yasujiro Ozu)







Corazón vagabundo/Capricho pasajero
Esta película, la número 29 de 54 que filmara Ozu, es la primera en que analiza la vida de la clase trabajadora. Introduce un personaje que reaparecerá en otros tres largometrajes: Kihachi, un obrero de los barrios pobres de Tokio y padre “soltero” interpretado por Takeshi Sakamoto, un hombre que mezcla perfectamente malicia e ingenuidad. Filme silente que presenta los conflictos generacionales entre padre e hijo, y que obtuvo el premio principal de la Academia Japonesa de cine, Kinema Jumpo.





Un homme doit élever seul son fils. Sa rencontre avec une femme plus jeune que lui provoque la jalousie du fils. Un de premiers films d’Ozu sur l’évolution de la famille.






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