Yasujirō Ozu

Directing

Yasujirō Ozu

Born — Died

1903-12-11 — 1963-12-12

Place of birth

Tokyo, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan

Known for

Directing

Credits

43 titles

Yasujirō Ozu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He began his career during the era of silent films. Ozu first made a number of short comedies, before turning to more serious themes in the 1930s. Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are prominent themes in Ozu's work. His most lauded films include Late Spring (1949), Tokyo Story (1953), Floating Weeds (1959), and An Autumn Afternoon (1962). His reputation has continued to grow since his death, and he is widely regarded as one of the world's most influential directors. In the 2012 Sight & Sound poll, Ozu's Tokyo Story was voted the greatest film of all time by world directors.

Known for

Tokyo Story poster
8.2

The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't have much time to spend with their aged parents, and so it falls to Noriko, the widow of their younger son who was killed in the war, to keep her in-laws company.

Tokyo Story

1953

Late Spring poster
8.0

Noriko is perfectly happy living at home with her widowed father, Shukichi, and has no plans to marry -- that is, until her aunt Masa convinces Shukichi that unless he marries off his 27-year-old daughter soon, she will likely remain alone for the rest of her life. When Noriko resists Masa's matchmaking, Shukichi is forced to deceive his daughter and sacrifice his own happiness to do what he believes is right.

Late Spring

1949

An Autumn Afternoon poster
7.9

Widower Shuhei Hirayama's caretaker is his 24-year-old daughter, Michiko. Gradually, he comes to realize that Michiko should not be obliged to look after him for the rest of his life, so he arranges a marriage for her.

An Autumn Afternoon

1962

Good Morning poster
7.7

Two boys beg their parents for a television set, nagging them until all patience is lost. The parents order the boys to be quiet and the boys do exactly that--refusing to utter a word. The boys' silence ultimately puts the whole neighborhood into turmoil.

Good Morning

1959

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice poster
7.5

The arranged marriage between a capricious woman from Tokyo high society and a quiet rustic man is tested by a marital crisis.

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice

1952

The End of Summer poster
7.5

The family of an older man who runs a small sake brewery become concerned with his finances and his health after they discover him visiting an old mistress from his youth.

The End of Summer

1961

Film credits

Behind the camera

Tokyo Story poster
8.2

The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't have much time to spend with their aged parents, and so it falls to Noriko, the widow of their younger son who was killed in the war, to keep her in-laws company.

Tokyo Story

1953

Tokyo Story poster
8.2

The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't have much time to spend with their aged parents, and so it falls to Noriko, the widow of their younger son who was killed in the war, to keep her in-laws company.

Tokyo Story

1953

Late Spring poster
8.0

Noriko is perfectly happy living at home with her widowed father, Shukichi, and has no plans to marry -- that is, until her aunt Masa convinces Shukichi that unless he marries off his 27-year-old daughter soon, she will likely remain alone for the rest of her life. When Noriko resists Masa's matchmaking, Shukichi is forced to deceive his daughter and sacrifice his own happiness to do what he believes is right.

Late Spring

1949

Late Spring poster
8.0

Noriko is perfectly happy living at home with her widowed father, Shukichi, and has no plans to marry -- that is, until her aunt Masa convinces Shukichi that unless he marries off his 27-year-old daughter soon, she will likely remain alone for the rest of her life. When Noriko resists Masa's matchmaking, Shukichi is forced to deceive his daughter and sacrifice his own happiness to do what he believes is right.

Late Spring

1949

An Autumn Afternoon poster
7.9

Widower Shuhei Hirayama's caretaker is his 24-year-old daughter, Michiko. Gradually, he comes to realize that Michiko should not be obliged to look after him for the rest of his life, so he arranges a marriage for her.

An Autumn Afternoon

1962

An Autumn Afternoon poster
7.9

Widower Shuhei Hirayama's caretaker is his 24-year-old daughter, Michiko. Gradually, he comes to realize that Michiko should not be obliged to look after him for the rest of his life, so he arranges a marriage for her.

An Autumn Afternoon

1962

Good Morning poster
7.7

Two boys beg their parents for a television set, nagging them until all patience is lost. The parents order the boys to be quiet and the boys do exactly that--refusing to utter a word. The boys' silence ultimately puts the whole neighborhood into turmoil.

Good Morning

1959

Good Morning poster
7.7

Two boys beg their parents for a television set, nagging them until all patience is lost. The parents order the boys to be quiet and the boys do exactly that--refusing to utter a word. The boys' silence ultimately puts the whole neighborhood into turmoil.

Good Morning

1959

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice poster
7.5

The arranged marriage between a capricious woman from Tokyo high society and a quiet rustic man is tested by a marital crisis.

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice

1952

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice poster
7.5

The arranged marriage between a capricious woman from Tokyo high society and a quiet rustic man is tested by a marital crisis.

The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice

1952

The End of Summer poster
7.5

The family of an older man who runs a small sake brewery become concerned with his finances and his health after they discover him visiting an old mistress from his youth.

The End of Summer

1961

The End of Summer poster
7.5

The family of an older man who runs a small sake brewery become concerned with his finances and his health after they discover him visiting an old mistress from his youth.

The End of Summer

1961

Record of a Tenement Gentleman poster
7.2

A hard-hearted old woman in a bombed-out Tokyo neighborhood reluctantly takes in an abandoned boy, leading to a heartwarming bond between them.

Record of a Tenement Gentleman

1947

Record of a Tenement Gentleman poster
7.2

A hard-hearted old woman in a bombed-out Tokyo neighborhood reluctantly takes in an abandoned boy, leading to a heartwarming bond between them.

Record of a Tenement Gentleman

1947

Early Summer poster
7.9

In postwar Tokyo, Noriko lives with her extended family. Although she enjoys her career and her social life, her more traditional family worries about her single marital status at the advanced age of 28. 40-year-old business associate Takako proposes, Noriko's family press her into accepting, but when her widowed childhood friend Kenkichi returns to the neighborhood, she finds her heart leading in another direction.

Early Summer

1951

Early Summer poster
7.9

In postwar Tokyo, Noriko lives with her extended family. Although she enjoys her career and her social life, her more traditional family worries about her single marital status at the advanced age of 28. 40-year-old business associate Takako proposes, Noriko's family press her into accepting, but when her widowed childhood friend Kenkichi returns to the neighborhood, she finds her heart leading in another direction.

Early Summer

1951

Woman of Tokyo poster
6.8

Ryoichi and Chikako, brother and sister, live together. Chikako toils during the day and, at night, prostitutes herself to fund his college tuition.

Woman of Tokyo

1933

Late Autumn poster
7.7

A woman and her daughter are each forced to contend with an increasing pressure to marry, particularly from three men who knew her late husband.

Late Autumn

1960

Late Autumn poster
7.7

A woman and her daughter are each forced to contend with an increasing pressure to marry, particularly from three men who knew her late husband.

Late Autumn

1960

I Was Born, But... poster
7.5

Brothers Keiji and Ryoichi move to a new neighborhood in the Tokyo suburbs after their father, an office clerk, is promoted. The boys join the local gang as lowly new kids and emerge as natural leaders after defeating a bully. While visiting the home of their father's boss, the brothers witness the ridicule their father endures to please his superior. Angry and embarrassed, the boys find their naive ideas about power being challenged.

I Was Born, But...

1932

Equinox Flower poster
7.4

Wataru's outwardly liberal views on marriage are severely tested when his daughter declares her love for a coworker and is adamant to live her own way, instead of agreeing to an arranged marriage. Outwitted by his female relatives, Hirayama stubbornly refuses to admit defeat.

Equinox Flower

1958

Equinox Flower poster
7.4

Wataru's outwardly liberal views on marriage are severely tested when his daughter declares her love for a coworker and is adamant to live her own way, instead of agreeing to an arranged marriage. Outwitted by his female relatives, Hirayama stubbornly refuses to admit defeat.

Equinox Flower

1958

Tokyo Twilight poster
7.7

Two sisters learn about the existence of their long-lost biological mother, but the younger is unable to accept the fact that she was abandoned as a child.

Tokyo Twilight

1957

Tokyo Twilight poster
7.7

Two sisters learn about the existence of their long-lost biological mother, but the younger is unable to accept the fact that she was abandoned as a child.

Tokyo Twilight

1957

Floating Weeds poster
7.5

A theater troupe master's visit with his old flame unintentionally sets off a chain of unexpected events with devastating consequences.

Floating Weeds

1959

Floating Weeds poster
7.5

A theater troupe master's visit with his old flame unintentionally sets off a chain of unexpected events with devastating consequences.

Floating Weeds

1959

The Munekata Sisters poster
7.1

Setsuko is in an unhappy marriage to Mimura, an unemployed, alcoholic engineer. She had always been in love with Hiroshi but both failed to propose when Hiroshi left for France a few years ago. But now he's back and Mariko tries to reunite them, although she too is secretly in love with Hiroshi.

The Munekata Sisters

1950

The Munekata Sisters poster
7.1

Setsuko is in an unhappy marriage to Mimura, an unemployed, alcoholic engineer. She had always been in love with Hiroshi but both failed to propose when Hiroshi left for France a few years ago. But now he's back and Mariko tries to reunite them, although she too is secretly in love with Hiroshi.

The Munekata Sisters

1950

Dragnet Girl poster
6.6

A gangster tries to find redemption with the inadvertent help of an innocent shop girl and his jealous girlfriend will do anything to keep him.

Dragnet Girl

1933

A Hen in the Wind poster
7.1

Tokiko patiently awaits her husband's return from WWII when her four-year old son falls ill. She takes him to the doctor but has no means of paying, so she resorts to prostitution. A month later, her husband returns to find his desperate wife, who tells him the truth. Together, they must deal with the consequences.

A Hen in the Wind

1948

A Hen in the Wind poster
7.1

Tokiko patiently awaits her husband's return from WWII when her four-year old son falls ill. She takes him to the doctor but has no means of paying, so she resorts to prostitution. A month later, her husband returns to find his desperate wife, who tells him the truth. Together, they must deal with the consequences.

A Hen in the Wind

1948

Early Spring poster
7.5

A young salaryman and his wife struggle within the confines of their passionless relationship while he embarks on an extramarital affair.

Early Spring

1956

Early Spring poster
7.5

A young salaryman and his wife struggle within the confines of their passionless relationship while he embarks on an extramarital affair.

Early Spring

1956

A Story of Floating Weeds poster
7.2

An aging actor returns to a small town with his troupe and reunites with his former lover and illegitimate son, a scenario that enrages his current mistress and results in heartbreak for all.

A Story of Floating Weeds

1934

What Did the Lady Forget? poster
6.3

A professor, Komiya, and his bossy wife, Tokiko, are to look after Setsuko, their high-spirited niece from Osaka. Despite being a minor, Setsuko is a liberated woman who does whatever she wants, including smoking. She even convinces Koyima to take her to a geisha house. When she gets rather tipsy, the professor calls Okada, one of his students, to take her home. The wife becomes suspicious of Setsuko when she sees Okada bringing her home.

What Did the Lady Forget?

1937

What Did the Lady Forget? poster
6.3

A professor, Komiya, and his bossy wife, Tokiko, are to look after Setsuko, their high-spirited niece from Osaka. Despite being a minor, Setsuko is a liberated woman who does whatever she wants, including smoking. She even convinces Koyima to take her to a geisha house. When she gets rather tipsy, the professor calls Okada, one of his students, to take her home. The wife becomes suspicious of Setsuko when she sees Okada bringing her home.

What Did the Lady Forget?

1937

The Only Son poster
7.4

A rural widow sends her only son to Tokyo to receive a better education. Years later, she visits him and finds he has become a night school teacher struggling to support his wife and son.

The Only Son

1936

The Moon Has Risen poster
6.9

Mokichi Asai is a widowed father living in Nara with three daughters—Chizuru, Ayako, and Setsuko. The youngest, Setsuko, plays matchmaker for her older sisters, leading to humorous and awkward romantic entanglements.

The Moon Has Risen

1955

There Was a Father poster
7.0

Shuhei Horikawa, a poor schoolteacher, struggles to raise his son Ryohei by himself, despite neither money nor prospects.

There Was a Father

1942

There Was a Father poster
7.0

Shuhei Horikawa, a poor schoolteacher, struggles to raise his son Ryohei by himself, despite neither money nor prospects.

There Was a Father

1942