Tokyo Sonata
2008 ‘Tôkyô sonata’ Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Synopsis
This Cannes festival winner chronicles the implosion of an ordinary Japanese family in contemporary Tokyo. The father Ryuhei Sasaki is devoted to his work. His wife, Megumi, left on her own to manage the house, struggles to retain a bond with her son Takashi in college, and the younger Kenji, a sensitive boy in elementary school. Though seemingly normal, the schisms begin to tear the family apart.
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Popular reviews
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Nuclear families tend to decay, too
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Apartment (Lawrence, KS) PC - 23"
This picture has been on the "watchit" list for a long time. Winner of a jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008, this picture made the international rounds through festivals and secured an English language subtitled release.
Kurosawa's films, most notably Cure, have tended to be more psychological explorations as much as any other genre they might be categorized under. This film is no exception. Almost an update on many Ozu stories, Tokyo Sonata, goes step by step through the near disintegration of the family.
The performances are all quite subtle and can lull one to believe that the picture is boring, showing the most trivial of daily life activities. However, the…
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I enjoyed every minute of this darkly comedic Japanese melodrama. Tokyo Sonata follows the tragic breakdown of a family, seemingly doomed from the start, as they struggle to get along with each other.
The brilliant editing and minimal score, combined with great acting from everyone involved, lead to a very satisfying and beautiful ending.
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Ein beindruckend komponierter Film, der anregt an das bestehende System zu überdenken.
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Have to say I enjoyed it a lot more on a second viewing. Although the third act is still a little problematic it didn't bother me that much this time. Maybe because I knew what was coming. The first part of the film is Japanese family drama near its best though. The film weaves together several issues of contemporary Japanese society pretty well, although not all aspects receive the same amount of attention. The eldest son's storyline falls pretty flat. Something I also noticed this viewing was how good the score is.
Recent reviews
More-
Nuclear families tend to decay, too
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Darkly comic domestic drama about a Japanese family torn apart by economic forces. Takes some absurd turns but remains emotionally compelling throughout.
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Apartment (Lawrence, KS) PC - 23"
This picture has been on the "watchit" list for a long time. Winner of a jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008, this picture made the international rounds through festivals and secured an English language subtitled release.
Kurosawa's films, most notably Cure, have tended to be more psychological explorations as much as any other genre they might be categorized under. This film is no exception. Almost an update on many Ozu stories, Tokyo Sonata, goes step by step through the near disintegration of the family.
The performances are all quite subtle and can lull one to believe that the picture is boring, showing the most trivial of daily life activities. However, the…
-
I enjoyed every minute of this darkly comedic Japanese melodrama. Tokyo Sonata follows the tragic breakdown of a family, seemingly doomed from the start, as they struggle to get along with each other.
The brilliant editing and minimal score, combined with great acting from everyone involved, lead to a very satisfying and beautiful ending.
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Ein beindruckend komponierter Film, der anregt an das bestehende System zu überdenken.
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Explores the family dynamic so well, just how distant they can be to each other. There was a sense of dread throughout the whole film and the ending was so good.
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Strange.
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"An executive loses his job but doesn't tell his family. As he pretends to carry on his job, whilst joining lines of people queueing for jobs and free soup his family life disintegrates around him. The film bought up some great thoughts about our ability to 'start again' and but was let down by appalling acting from everyone except Kyôko Koizumi (the protagonist's wife) who was excellent."
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4 out of 5 (B+)