Nostalgia-②
The deep sadness and disappointment of leaving Tokyo seems to have eased somewhat by the time Ozu writes “Early Summer”, when he was 47 years old. In “Early Summer”, Kenkichi (Nihonyanagi Hiroshi), a doctor at a university hospital, is approached to take up a position in Akita Prefecture, and tells his mother Tami (Haruko Sugimura) of his intention to accept the offer. As soon as Tami finds out her son's assignment is far from Tokyo, she becomes displeased, but in the end she agrees.
■“Early Summer” (Screenplay: Noda Kogo, Ozu)
108 Kenkichi's house
Kenkichi: “I'm thinking of going to Akita...”
Tami: “Akita?”
Kenkichi: “Yes.”
Tami: “Are you on a business trip?”
Kenkichi: “No, I was approached to become the head of internal medicine at Akita Prefectural hospital.”
Tami: “To you?”
Kenkichi: “That's right. (omitted) I was told that I would have to be patient for three or four years at most...”
Tami: (Hesitating)
Kenkichi: “What do you think?”
Tami (seemingly reluctant): “What do you think?”
Kenkichi: “I'm planning to go...but I don't mind if I go alone.”
(omitted)
Tami: “I wonder if there isn't a position like that somewhere in Tokyo...”
Kenkichi: “No. It's because I go to the countryside (omitted)”
(omitted)
Tami “...”
Kenkichi says, “I'm going. Okay?” and stands up.
Tami is hanging her head.
Kenkichi: “When you don't like something, you get grumpy and stay silent...it's a bad habit.”
113 At night Kenkichi's house
Tami (Somberly): “Thank you for all your help over the years...” (wiping her tears)
Noriko: “Never mind. Is this your first time going to Akita?”
Tami: “Yeah...my late husband worked on the railway, so I had been to Utsunomiya before...”
Noriko: “I see. But it will be soon. You'll be back soon.”
Tami: “Kenkichi also says that, but...”
Noriko: “He's quite right.”
Tami: “I don't think so... I was hoping that Kenkichi would marry someone so that I could stay here for the rest of my life...”
Sugiyama (Ikebe Ryo), a company employee in “Early Spring” who was demoted from the Tokyo headquarters to a branch office in the countryside, and his wife Masako (Awashima Chikage) have the same feelings for Tokyo as Tami in “Early Summer”.
■“Early Spring” (Screenplay: Noda Kogo, Ozu)
163 2nd floor of boarding house
Sugiyama: “It’s a small town.”
Masako: “I went out shopping and looked around the town now.”
Sugiyama: “Let me start over again.”
Masako: “Yes, make sure you do. (Looking out the window) Ah, the train is on its way.”
Sugiyama: “Yeah.”
The two of them stand together and approach the window.
164 An express train bound for Tokyo rushes ahead of the two people's gaze.
165 By the window
The two watch the train intently.
Sugiyama: “If you take that train, you’ll arrive at Tokyo tomorrow morning.”
Masako: “Well, 2 or 3 years will go by very quickly.”
Sugiyama “Woom”
Ozu does not hide his empathy and love for the chagrin of the main characters who are forced to leave Tokyo and live in the countryside. On the other hand, what kind of feelings did Ozu have toward Matsusaka, the town where he spent 10 years of his youth? This can be clearly seen in the following scene from “Tokyo Story”.
Near the end of “Tokyo Story”, the youngest son Keizo (Osaka Shiro) returns to parents' house in Onomichi after receiving a telegram that his elderly mother (Higashiyama Chieko) is in critical condition. Keizo, who arrived late, was greeted by his eldest brother (Yamamura Soh), eldest sister Shige (Sugimura Haruko), his sister-in-law (Hara Setsuko), and his youngest sister (Kagawa Kyoko). His elderly mother had already passed away in the early hours of that day, and only her youngest son, who lived in Osaka, the closest city to Onomichi, was not able to make it to her death in time.
■“Tokyo Story” (Screenplay: Noda Kogo, Ozu)
147 Living room- Zashiki
Keizo: “Unfortunately, I was on a business trip to Matsusaka. I'm sorry for being late. I was away when I received the telegram. Shige...”
Shige: “I see.”
Keizo: “You had a terribly hard time. When was it?”
Shige: “-This morning, 3:15...”
Keizo: “Really? If I had taken the 20:40 train bound for Kagoshima, I would have made it in time.”
It is said that the script Ozu co-wrote with Noda Kogo was always written with such strictness that he did not allow even the last letter of the dialogue to be compromised. If that's the case, why did Keizo go out of his way to explain in this scene, “The reason he wasn't there in time to watch his elderly mother die was because he was on a business trip to Matsusaka.” Putting aside the fact that Keizo was on a business trip, why did his destination have to be Matsusaka? Ozu never explained why. Also, there is no evidence that anyone asked Ozu why.
So, what I would like to consider once again is the mystery of how Ozu thought of the town of Matsusaka. For Ozu, Matsusaka is a familiar place where he spent 10 years of his impressionable youth; in other words, it is a memorable place that he could call his second home. However, it can also be said that this was the town where he was forced to be separated from his beloved family, including his father and elder brother. In other words, the town of Matsusaka had the same meaning to Ozu as losing an irreplaceable member of his family.
The youngest son, who happened to be on a business trip to Matsusaka on the very day his mother was about to die, was destined to lose his mother because he had gone to Matsusaka rather than anywhere else. The name of the town Matsusaka, along with the railroad crossing image, can be said to be a key word in Ozu's film, which represents family separation and bereavement.
