Films in Review

Saw #ThereWasAFather. As has been observed there’s an imperial, martial tinge to it, what w’ all this talk of duty & sacrifice …

… The war never actually comes up though. In this it’s sort of like Ozu’s, or rather Shochiku’s, Meet Me In St. Louis!

#ThereWasAFather. That 1^st son-encouraging speech echoes Polonius’s (I iii), w’ its practical bluster that masks the tender depths of a father’s feelings …

… That 2^nd son-rejecting speech feels monstrous. It’s like Ryu’s devastating lie in the miraculous Late Spring, but w’out the irony or tragedy.

#ThereWasAFather. Crazy compositions. Radical narrative ellipses. Again, always: pretty revolutionary for such a quiet filmmaker!