by Tom Wilmot

Sandwiched between the acclaimed masterpieces “Late Spring” and “Tokyo Story”, “Early Summer” is the middle entry in Yasujiro Ozu’s unofficial Noriko trilogy. Released in 1951, the film marked the second collaboration between the Japanese director and actress Setsuko Hara, who would go on to work with the filmmaker four more times. A cheerful addition to Ozu’s post-war filmography, the film is nevertheless tinged with the melancholy that one would come to expect from the master director.

Noriko Mamiya (Setsuko Hara) lives with her parents, brother, sister-in-law and troublesome nephews in her family’s Tokyo home. We follow each family member as they go about their daily lives, working, parenting, and socialising. Noriko cares for her parents and meets with friends, who mostly squabble amongst themselves over matters regarding marriage. While indifferent to the idea at first, Noriko soon finds herself staring down an arranged engagement,...