Early Summer

1951 2h 5m JA

🙌

7.9

BANGER

★7.9TMDB · 218

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In postwar Tokyo, Noriko lives with her extended family. Although she enjoys her career and her social life, her more traditional family worries about her single marital status at the advanced age of 28. 40-year-old business associate Takako proposes, Noriko's family press her into accepting, but when her widowed childhood friend Kenkichi returns to the neighborhood, she finds her heart leading in another direction.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

HBO Max Amazon ChannelSubscription

HBO MaxSubscription

Apple TV StoreRent

Apple TV StoreBuy

Cast

Setsuko Hara
Noriko Mamiya
Chishū Ryū
Koichi Mamiya
Chikage Awashima
Aya Tamura
Kuniko Miyake
Fumiko Mamiya
Ichirō Sugai
Shukichi Mamiya
Chieko Higashiyama
Shige Mamiya
Haruko Sugimura
Tami Yabe
Kuniko Igawa
Takako

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Writers: Kōgo Noda, Yasujirō Ozu
Languages: English, Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

75 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Japanese.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Yasujirō Ozu, shot by Yûharu Atsuta. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Senji Ito. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Setsuko Hara and Chishū Ryū and Chikage Awashima carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0043313 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Yasujirō Ozu directs. Yûharu Atsuta behind the camera. Senji Ito scores. Yoshiyasu Hamamura cuts. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in English, Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

175 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Japanese.
3Directed by Yasujirō Ozu, shot by Yûharu Atsuta. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Senji Ito. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Yoshiyasu Hamamura shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Setsuko Hara and Chishū Ryū and Chikage Awashima carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0043313 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 9 themes, including "marriage proposal", "family relationships", "matchmaking", "tokyo, japan".