Yasujiro Ozu is one of the most famous Japanese film makers along with Akira Kurosawa. They are both flourished in Showa period in Japan. (around 1920s~1970s).
In the beginning of Showa period, Ozu was more famous than Kurosawa was. However, since the taste of his movie was based on normal life of Japanese family more than on fresh and cool idea that Kurosawa used in his movies, his popularity was declined and after his death there were some movie critics or directors who called his movies were old-fashioned and boring. On the other hand, after a while from his death, his works were appreciated in Europe mainly in France, and in 2003, in the year of 100th birthday of Ozu’s, there were many memorial projects of his film works and events of his movies. Still now, there are many directors and image artists who acknowledge that they are inspired by Ozu.
Ozu was born in 1903 in Tokyo. Since his father was quite rich in those days, right after he entered his jr. high school in Mie prefecture he started skipping class and going to watch movies. He was into movies since then.
After he worked as a teacher for one year, Ozu got employed by a film studio named Shochiku film studio in 1923, which was very famous movie studio in those days. And after 4 years, he directed his first movie. His taste of movie in those days was very humorous and a little bit critical, but since he joined World War Two and belonged to a military report film group and went to Singapore, he watched many Hallywood films which were requisitioned.
After the war, he returned to the movie world, and released his most famous three movies in a row which are renowned as masterpieces of Japanese movie. They are titiled "Late Spring," "Wheat Autumn," and "Tokyo Story" which were released around in 1950.
Trailer of "Tokyo Story"
(An old husband and wife come to Tokyo to see their own children and a doughter-in-law who lost her husband in a war. Their own children do not care about them because of their job, and only the daughter-in-law takes care of them very well...)
His film works, which amount to 54 and are black-and-white films, were consistent in his unique style to film, and the way he shoot the movies is put a hight value on it present day.
For example, most famous mannar he used when he filmed was filming from lower angle. He always tried to put the camera very close to the ground so that the angle come close to the one of Japanese people who are usually sitting on the floor.
To comprete the filming angle, he invented the "tatami shot," in which the camera is placed at a low height, precisely where it would be if one were kneeling on a tatami mat.
The camera angle is lower than the sholders of characters and this angle makes the audience feel like they are sitting with them. And showing a fusuma (a framed and papared sliding door used asa room partition) in the right end of the shoot makes feel the depth of the room.
↓An example of the scene showing the depth of a room showing fusuma and flowers.
One of the important reasons why his movie is very popular and famous not only in Japan but also around the world is the theme he used in his movies, "kindness and understanding in family." Since his famous film works are all realated to family deeply and tenderly, the theme in his films is regarded as universal and wholeheated.
Besides this theme, he examined all the struggles we face in life such as the cycles of birth and death, the transition from childhood to adulthood, adn the tension between tradition and modernity. It is said that he is the first person who established the basic idea of Japanese home drama.
Yasujiro Ozu (小津安二郎) 1903~1963 
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