I read an article a couple weeks ago about the declining marriage rates in Asia as women are getting married at a much older age and sometimes not at all. There are many factors that contribute to this including higher education, better career opportunities and a shift away from traditional family values. It is strange then to watch Late Spring which seems like such a forward thinking film yet is mired in traditional values.
Late Spring tells the story of the relationship between a widowed father and his 27 year old daughter Noriko. They live a quiet life together with Noriko essentially taking care of her father's daily needs, playing the role of the dutiful daughter. Both are content with this arrangement until the father's sister, Noriko's aunt Masa, voices her concern of Noriko's single status. At 27, time is running out for Noriko; she must find a husband soon or risk being alone forever. The father agrees, but Noriko does not. She has no desire to marry. She is perfectly content staying by her father's side. The majority of the film focuses on the constant pressure Noriko receives from everyone around her to marry until she finally gives in.
It is a simple story, but one with extreme emotion and turmoil. It is written on Noriko's face. In the beginning she is always politely smiling but you can sense her discomfort anytime marriage is brought up. She nervously giggles and changes the subject or refuses to talk about it. She does not want to get married at all. I feel like this would have been a great spot for her to be presented as an independent modern woman, but her reasons for remaining single are puzzling to me. It is not for her career (she has none) or her personal ambition, or even a case of only marrying a man she really loves (heaven forbid!), but because she wants to take care of her father.
My problem is that this rationale makes her seem unrealistic, like a character archetype rather than a real person. It is much too self sacrificing and sentimental for my taste, yet it got me to wondering if that is really the reason. It is possible that Noriko is only using her father as an excuse to not get married. Nobody would question her loyalty to her father; it is noble and fits in with traditional family values, but perhaps it hides the fact that she has other plans in her life than to be someone's wife. Maybe she wants to get married, but only on her own terms, not because of societal pressures. She tells her friend that she dislikes the idea of arranged marriages. There is a hint of a romance between her and a man who is already engaged. Perhaps she would want to be with him, but alas she cannot go down that route. Unfortunately none of this is explicitly mentioned. She does not reveal much about her thoughts other than her silent expressions and her proclamations of devotion to her father. I so desperately wanted her to scream out loud, "No, I don't want to get married! I will not be defined by anyone else but myself!" but all she can manage is a sullen expression with layers of anxiety and resentment hidden underneath.
I was extremely annoyed with the constant pestering Masa does throughout the film. She represents the old way of thinking and comes across as pushy and inconsiderate of Noriko's feelings regarding the matter. To her, and by extension traditional values, it is not a matter of love or compatibility with her potential husband, but that there is nothing wrong with him, so why not? Arranged marriages kind of suck.
And Noriko's father doesn't help matters much either. He does seem concerned with her daughter's future and wants to make this marriage happen, but realizes how incredibly unhappy it makes her. What if marriage really isn't the answer and things were okay the way they were? I don't think she should devote the rest of her good years to taking care of her father, but on the other hand, she shouldn't get married if she doesn't want to. His pep talk to her before the wedding doesn't bode much confidence. It may take two years, three, maybe five or ten, to find happiness with this man. "Your mother wasn't happy at first. I found her weeping in the kitchen many times." Good luck, Noriko!
It is interesting to note that we don't actually get to see Noriko's future husband or see the actual wedding which is actually quite fitting. It doesn't really matter who she marries anyway. She doesn't even know him so neither should we. The film is really about the relationship between father and daughter. The last time we see Noriko she is beautifully dressed in her ceremonial wedding dress, though with a hint of sadness to her face. The last we see of the father, he is alone in his empty house peeling an orange aimlessly. They acquiesced to society's expectations of them, but none seem to be better off.
Late Spring is a heralded classic from who some consider one of the greatest directors of all time in Yasujiro Ozu. Unfortunately I'm too much of a newbie to really appreciate it I suppose. Typically with unfamiliar films or directors I just try to focus on the story first and take in anything else if I can. There were some little things I saw which is similar to stuff I noticed watching Still Walking, whose director Hirokazu Kore-eda is said to be heavily influenced by Ozu. For instance there are the low angled shots that sit on the floor and the "pillow shot" where a scene begins or ends with an inanimate object or empty area in a room which doesn't sound like anything special, but is pretty cool. I also don't think I saw the camera move once in Late Spring. I think it was Ozu's style to make the film as simple looking as possible as to not distract the audience.
I thought Late Spring was frustrating to watch, but in a good way if that makes any sense. If it makes you feel something, then it's probably doing its job. I thought it was a good film, though I don't know enough about anything to give it any more thought than that. I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt though as it seems like there are a bunch of unsaid goodness laying underneath.
Grade: B
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