In a distinctly contemporary Tokyo that looks backwards to the city’s disappearing past, Yoko is a writer investigating the life of a modernist composer of the 1930s. She is pregnant by a man she does not want to marry and has found a kindred spirit in a used bookstore owner who aids her research.
Direction
Hou's static frames make Tokyo feel like a memory already fading.
Cinematography
Every train shot is a painting of motion and stillness.
Score
Jiang Wenye's music haunts the edges of silence.
Director
Hou Hsiao-hsien
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Hou made this as a tribute to Ozu, shooting in Ozu's beloved neighborhood of Sangenjaya and even using his signature low-angle 'tatami shots' of characters in doorways.
Lead actress Yo Hitoto was a pop singer with zero acting experience; Hou cast her after seeing her music video and liking her 'untrained naturalness.'
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