Peccary Gloves: An Ozu Blog

 Why is cake such an important symbol?  There are two very similar scenes involving cake that occur in both Late Spring and Early Summer. While the Noriko movies are all very alike, I'm interested in discussing why he has two such obviously similar scenes in  two separate movies.       In Early Summer, Noriko is able to buy a cake simply because she wants to. Her friend does ask her to, but Noriko doesn't seem like to type of person to spend so much money to avoid being awkward. She seems proud to be able to do this and share it with someone. She acts so casual when she's cutting it. Her body language relaxes the scene and cuts any tension that might have formed from them arguing about how much it cost. She even giggles when Fumiko is almost aghast at the price. It's a symbol of the freedom she has gained for herself working alone.       Her friend Aya is the one who makes the cake in Late Spring , and it has a similar correla...

  How Ozu Uses And Doesn’t Use Show Don’t Tell By Eliot Rugh One of the most fascinating aspects of Ozu as a director is what he chooses to show on the screen. In his many films, much of the physical actions of the characters happen off-screen, the marriages, the deaths, and the travel to and from places are all stuff that is rarely or never shown. Characters usually talk with one another about events that have happened instead of seeing the character’s in the scene that they are describing. Having characters describe to each other what they experienced at an event that we were shown creates a different feeling from other more traditional movies. Dialogue becomes the texture of the movie and we, the viewer, come to understand physical activities through the lens of other characters’ words. This is an important aspect of what makes Ozu’s films so different from other films and it leads me to the meat of what I want to talk about. One of the most important aspects of writing especial...