Sunday, March 29, 2020
Sushi and Baseball
Early Summer depicts a Japan in transition. Defeated and occupied by the Americans, the Japanese both cling to their traditional ways and embrace new ideas from their occupiers. How does the movie show this transition? Does this movie make a judgment about the new American influence? Is there a political slant, however subtle, in this film? What does this movie think about baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie?
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In the movie Early Summer by Yasujiro Ozu the postwar climate of “suburban” Japanese life and the daily lives of the families uses the new American culture as a way to understand compare and contrast the story of Noriko. Often when watching the movie you will notice the small references to American culture such as the children of the Mamiyas eating American candies, the influence through the dating and marrying culture of the younger generation and attire while outside the home. The movie strikes a cohesive balance between the two cultures, while traditional Japanese is much more dominant their appears to be little hate towards the “new” American culture besides some ideas that adopting American culture can be used as an insult. The movie closes with the departure of traditional Japanese culture as a young woman walks into distance after her wedding ceremony as the grandparents wonder how life flew by so fast and left behind what they grew up with. The movies poses the idea that Japan is moving away from its roots as it recognizes that American culture is the way forward under this new climate and we might as well adapt to new circumstances.
ReplyDeleteThroughout Early Summer we become with three distinct generations in a single family. The grandparents, the parents, and the children. These three separate groups show varying degrees of acceptance of life under American occupation. The grandparents, stay true to their traditional Japanese ways. They sport strictly kimonos and other Japanese clothing and are true to their ways. The parents are seemingly torn between Japans, the one before and the one now. Sometimes the wear western clothing, sometimes more traditional Japanese wear. Sometimes they speak in English and embrace westernization, while sometimes they remain more traditional like their parents. Finally, the young boys, born into this new Japan fully embrace the ways of American influence. These young boys were only American clothing including baseball caps. They play with American toys, including train sets with signs in English. They have seemingly rejected the ways of their family in favor of the occupying Americans. The director also paints these young boys as disrespectful, rude, and mean. They scream at their parents, aunt, and grandparents. They run away at any sign of trouble, and they are unappreciative of all that they have. I believe that having the two people in the film who are most closely associated with the culture shift of Americanization that swept Japan in the fifties be these mean spirited disrespectful children was a very conscious choice. The American influence is seen as a sickness that has infected and changes these boys for the worse. Their pure grandparents do not respond in kind to the mean children and their parents rarely do. I believe this was done to show that the traditional Japanese way is above that of the Americans.
ReplyDeleteIn the movie Early Summer directed by Yasujiro Ozu, the setting is placed in a postwar suburban Japanese community. In this community the individuals daily lives consist of American culture influences while shadowing Noriko. During the movie you can find small references to American culture. Examples of this are children of the Mamiyas eating candies from America. The movie has a contrasting balance between two cultures, traditional Japanese and American culture. Traditional Japanese is dominant while there is not a definite large group of Japanese hating the New American influences. The movie ends with the escape of traditional Japanese culture from a young woman into a married bride. Her grandparents wonder what happened to the traditional ways. This movie is about an idea that Japan is leaving behind its origins.
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