Tokyo Story

press release: Japan | 1953 | 35mm | 137 min. | Japanese with English subtitles

Director: Yasujiro Ozu; Cast: Chishu Ryu, Setsuko Hara, Chieko Higashiyama

Ozu’s undisputed masterwork is a meditation on the generational gap and the trials of mortality. An elderly couple visit their children in a bustling Tokyo, where they are seen almost as a nuisance and shuffled off to a resort. Modernization is the torrent that tears through Japanese society and Ozu takes a hard look at what it has done to the family unit.

After a nearly 16-month hiatus, big screen movies are making their comeback at the UW Cinematheque’s regular venue, 4070 Vilas Hall! Beginning Wednesday June 30, the Cinematheque will commence six weeks of free screenings beginning with Leo McCarey’s Make Way for Tomorrow, a classic tearjerker that was originally scheduled for April 2020. The summer lineup includes canonized comedies, action blockbusters, international thrillers, contemporary gems from Asia, the complete American works of French superstar Jean Gabin, a three-film salute to Charles Bronson in honor of his centennial, and more!

Summer programming will take place on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings and all feature films will be screened from original or archival 35mm prints. Admission, as always, is free and open to the public. Seating will be limited and socially distanced according to current UW-Madison policies. When possible, additional showtimes have been added to accommodate more viewers. All Cinematheque screenings are free and open to the public.