Mark's Remarks

The End of Summer

Starring Setsuko Hara, Yoko Tsukasa and Ganjirō Nakamura

Rating: ☀☀☀

The sun is beaming, the heat is surging, and the air conditioning is cranking higher. It can be exhausting to get through the humid weather, but I love this time of year.

It’s when I can take an extended break from the headaches of school. I go to a job I love during the day, run in the afternoons, and wind down with a movie in the evenings. Ah, so simple and carefree.

Unfortunately, it’s all coming to an end soon and I’m saying this in the beginning of August. God, it breaks my heart to move on. The End of Summer is here for the Kohayagawa family, too.

The family consists of a grandfather, his three children, and other grandchildren. In the final smoldering months of Japan’s brutal summer, the Kohayagawas have some heat of their own to handle.

The grandfather, played by Ganjirō Nakamura, is having an affair with an old flame. His children and the rest of the family are upset that he’s always sneaking away and not spending time with them. Also, grandpa’s running around in the blistering heat of summer is alarming.

Director Yasujirō Ozu creates the perfect blend of comedy and drama with the Kohayagawas. Although their family ties are a little confusing, it offers good laughs and tears.

Like any other Ozu film, we’re thrown right into the story. We meet the characters in the middle of their busy lives and we’re expected to know their names.

After a half hour or so, you can put the pieces together. However, in this case it was tricky to find out who-is-who.

I thought the young Noriko, played by Yoko Tsukasa, was the niece of Akiko, played by Setsuko Hara, for the whole film. But at the end of the movie, Noriko refers to Akiko as “Sister.” This could either be a term used toward Akiko as a close friend or throws the family tree off. No matter what she said, Ozu could make the relationships clearer.

Despite the confusion of family members, Ozu manages to make this strange relationship funny. It’s amusing to see the grandfather hustle throughout town to get to his girlfriend’s home. Also, when the family confronts the grandfather about his affair, they hilariously grill him. The grandfather spectacularly dodges so many questions, but Ozu points out that we can’t hide our secrets away forever.

While Ozu makes light of the old man’s romance, he shows how it negatively affects his family. Grandpa’s behavior didn’t come out of the blue; he cheated on his now deceased wife, which ruined the household.

Sure, we can laugh at the absurdity of this situation, but it’s worth recognizing the implications of cheating. Too many times in movies like this, the genre goes either one way or the other. The flick could either be a screwball comedy or tea spilling drama.

Ozu has the talent to blend the two perfectly together. While there are plenty of moments of laughter, it balances out with the dramatic parts.

Particularly, its ending is quite moving. A tall chimney blows thick dark smoke across the rural landscape. A farmer notices the haze and comments, “That’s the circle of life.”

Ozu exemplifies the power of film through this combination of drama and comedy, while giving perspective on Japan’s culture. Movies are supposed to move you into different emotions. They can make you laugh or cry, but great filmmakers can make you do both.

What elevates a director even higher is if they give you an insightful message. In this case, Ozu gives you insight into how extramarital affairs were received in 1960s Japan. The grandfather’s wife was broken by his foolishness, but his behavior never stopped. As sad as it is, some people can’t change for the better.

Change is something the grandfather battled throughout his whole life, right through The End of Summer. We can look at the grandfather’s dilemma with a serious or comedic lens.

What I look at with a serious lens is the end of my summer. I don’t want to leave my great job, hometown friends and great weather behind for school.

However, some changes are inevitable.