Tokyo Story, Directed By Yasujiro Ozu (1953)

This film is regularly selected as one of the greatest movies ever made.

Ozu was an amazing Japanese director.  His films rarely have overt conflict or violence - they are often very sweet, insightful films filled with interesting characters.

The plot of this film is very simple.  A Japanese mom and dad decide to visit their children in Tokyo to see how they are doing.  The children all have jobs and families and are quite busy, so they cannot spend much time with their parents.  Ironically, the only person who takes a day off from work is their daughter-in-law - the wife of the couple's son (who died in the war).  She becomes a type of hero in this film as she shows an unusual depth of kindness and warmth toward the parents - to whom she is no longer even related.

Lovers of film and film history - as a matter of fact everyone - should see this film.  It's consistently ranked as one of the best ever for a reason. Ozu was a master of subtle but meaningful character development.

Please enjoy Tokyo Story.  This version has English subtitles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLTjojvakf4