Special Subject- Silent Ozu Sampler – TOKYO CHORUS (1931), I WAS BORN BUT… (1932), and PASSING FANCY (1933)

There's Sometimes a Buggy

For our January Special Subject, we look at three silent "family comedies" by Ozu, Tokyo Chorus (1931), I Was Born, But... (1932), and Passing Fancy (1933), although we argue that "comedy" doesn't entirely encompass the emotional range of these films. We argue that the melancholy of late Ozu is already discernible in these tales of father-son conflict and confrontation with life's disappointing nature, although Passing Fancy offers a different kind of father-son relationship and unique brand of comedy. Then in Fear and Moviegoing in Toronto, we discuss Robert Rossen's The Hustler as a blacklisting allegory and the cinematic pyrotechnics of Brian De Palma's Snake Eyes.

Time Codes:

0h 00m 45s: TOKYO CHORUS (1931) [dir. Yasujiro Ozu]

0h 26m 53s: I WAS BORN, BUT… (1932) [dir. Yasujiro Ozu]

0h 38m 36s: PASSING FANCY (1933) [dir. Yasujiro Ozu]

0h 57m 41s: Fear and Moviegoing in Toronto – The Hustler (1961) directed by Robert Rossen & Snake Eyes (1998) directed by Brian De Palma

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* Listen to our guest episode on The Criterion Project – a discussion of Late Spring

* Marvel at our meticulously ridiculous Complete Viewing Schedule for the 2020s

* Intro Song: “Sunday” by Jean Goldkette Orchestra with the Keller Sisters (courtesy of The Internet Archive)

* Read Elise’s piece on Gangs of New York – “Making America Strange Again”

* Check out Dave’s Robert Benchley blog – an attempt to annotate and reflect upon as many of the master humorist’s 2000+ pieces as he can locate – Benchley Data: A Wayward Annotation Project!

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