This film screened 18th July 2016.

Our monthly strand in which a key film is presented in the context of a notional film canon.

This month’s selection will be presented by former film critic turned award-winning-novelist, Paul Lynch.

In 2012, directors polled by Sight & Sound voted Tokyo Story the greatest film ever made. Inspired by Leo McCarey’s heartbreaking Make Way for Tomorrow (1937), this family drama sees an elderly couple all but shunned by their petulant children, who bloviate about their own concerns even as tragedy strikes.

Ozu’s discreet visual style places the emphasis on the dialogue and the nuanced performances of the performers, particularly Chishû Ryû and Chieko Higashiyama as the aged parents whose dignity stands in marked contrast to the younger generation’s insensitivity. (Notes by Kevin Coyne).