Nostalgia-①
For Ozu, who was born in Fukagawa, Tokyo, having to live in a rural town for 10 years during his youth had a great impact on his outlook on life. Ozu left Tokyo when he was nine years old, and by that age the sights and friends of his hometown must have been firmly etched in his memory. By leaving his hometown at an impressionable age, young Yasujiro must have had a deep sense of attachment to Tokyo and a strong motivation to develop a sense of longing for home.
There are no reliable documents left to support Yasujiro's state of mind at the time he moved to Matsusaka. However, in Ozu's works, there are many depictions that give you an idea of how he felt after having to leave Tokyo and live in a rural area. In particular, there is a scene in “Early Spring” where an office worker (Miura), who is on leave due to illness, earnestly expresses his feelings for Tokyo to his colleague Sugiyama (Ikebe Ryo), who has come to visit him. This scene very directly conveys Ozu's longing for his hometown Tokyo, where he lived far away from.
■“Early Spring” (Screenplay: Noda Kogo, Ozu)
114 Miura's room
Miura is lying on the futon bed.
Sugiyama, visiting Miura, wipes the sweat his chest.
Miura: “Sometimes I think of my company and miss it. The first time I saw the Marunouchi-Building was when I came to Tokyo on a school trip. At that time, it was already in evening, I was surprised to see that the lights were still on. As a junior high school student from Akita Prefecture, I felt like I was in a foreign country. Since then, the Marunouchi-Building has been my dream destination. Even after I entered college, every time I passed by that area...”
Sugiyama:‟Hey, if you talk too much, it might be harmful to your body.”
Miura:‟No, I don't mind. I feel really good today.”
Similarly, “College is a Nice Place” depicts the disappointment and sadness of a student from a rural area who is forced to leave Tokyo against his will. The student Amano (Ryu Chishu) in this film can be said to be one of the characters who expresses the true feelings of young Ozu, along with Miura in “Early Spring”. He is also Ozu's alter ego.
By the way, the original author James Maki is Ozu's pen name. This name was originally a joint pseudonym devised to be used by Fushimi Akira, Ikeda Tadao, and Kitamura Komatsu, but since no one else used it, it became exclusive to Ozu.
■“College is a Nice Place” (Original story: James Maki, Adaptation: Arata Msao)
122 Corridor-window
Amano is standing by the window, staring intently at the scenery outside.
His sadness increases.
123 Night view of metropolis Tokyo covered in rain
124 Hallway
Amano is looking at the scenery outside.
(omitted)
128 Stairs
Amano is crouched down, holding his forehead with one hand.
Students surround him and ask him, "What's wrong?"
Amano tries his best to pretend like nothing is wrong and stands up.
T (Subtitles): “I felt strangely sad thinking that I was saying goodbye to Tokyo just for tonight.”
And he gives a sad smile.
T: “It’s because I lived in Tokyo for a long time.”
Amano bites his lip.
In “Tokyo Chorus”, Okajima (Okada Tokihiko), an office worker who was fired from his company, is introduced to a job by his teacher from his school days, Omura (Saito Tatsuo). However, even though he has finally found a job, Okajima's expression tends to be cloudy. This was because the job he was introduced to was as a teacher at a girls' school in the countryside. Ozu once worked as a substitute teacher at an elementary school in the mountains. Even if the original idea for this script was a collection of novels by Kitamura Komatsu, there is no doubt that this scene strongly reflects Ozu's own sad feelings when he left Tokyo.
■“Tokyo Chorus” (Original idea: Kitamura Komatsu, Adaptation: Noda Kogo)
55 Cooking area
Sugako, Okajima's wife, works here.
Mr.Omura comes in with Okajima and says with a smile on his face.
T (subtitles):“Luckily, I found a job for you.”
Okajima looks at Mr.Omura in surprise.
Sugako couldn't help but look at Mr.Omura as well.
While Mr.Omura handed the letter to Okajima,
T: “Your job is an English teacher at a girls' school, but are you good at English?”
(omitted )
Sugako approaches Okajima and calls out “Darling.”
Okajima also smiles as he looks at Sugako with his tearful eyes.
T: “I hear it is a girls' school in Tochigi Prefecture, but let's go anyway.”
Sugako nods, “Yeah.”
However, both of them sit down, feeling a little disappointed about leaving Tokyo.
Sugako directs her gaze to the peacefully sleeping baby and pulls herself together and says,
T: “I'm sure you'll be able to come back to Tokyo someday.”
Okajima nods, “Yeah.”
However, both of them had gloomy expressions on their faces.
