Review of There Was a Father (1942) by Michael L — 20 May 2008
A disappointing effort from Ozu. The premise is somewhat similar to that of The Only Son and the dynamics between the father and the son is similar to that of the daughter and father in Late Spring. The father played by Chishu Ryu supports his son through high school and college by working in Tokyo away from him.
They have a very close relationship and the brief moments they spend together throughout their years apart are their happiest times. I liked the first half of the film, but the decision of the father to stay separate when they meet again in the second half is less than believable and more like war time propaganda.
Even though the ending subverts the propagandistic elements this still makes the characters less compelling than what you are used to from Ozu. Also dramatically this is really bland, even by Ozu's standards.
Especially the second half doesn't really offer many memorable scenes.
This review of There Was a Father (1942) was written by Michael L on 20 May 2008.
There Was a Father has generally received very positive reviews.
Was this review helpful?
