NYFF Review: Café Lumière

Anyone familiar with the films of Hou Hsiao-hsien can detect the influence of Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu on his work. The long takes, aesthetic composition, and even Hou's occasional subject matter (family issues, generational conflicts) can all be traced back to the works of the Japanese master. Though Hou has included a direct reference to Ozu (Late Spring is being shown on a television in 1995's Good Men, Good Women), he's only now directed a film that is an acknowledged homage, made to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ozu's birth. Café Lumière (Hou's first film to be made in Japan), may lack when compared to the sheer perfection of Flowers of Shanghai, but it is a quiet, beautiful, touching film. The plot (what little there is) concerns Yoko (JPop sensation Yo Hitoto), a writer who is researching materials on real-life Taiwanese composer Jiang Wenye. As the film opens she has just returned from Taiwan, and announces to her father and stepmother that she is pregnant by her Taiwanese boyfriend, whom she has no intention of marrying. Her father, not at all pleased with Yoko's situation, is unable to communicate with her, try as he might. Yoko's good friend Hajime (the very busy Tadanobu Asano), who runs a second hand bookshop and records train sounds in his spare time, is secretly in love with Yoko, but he too is unable to express his feelings. The family in crisis theme is pure Ozu (Filmbrain was reminded a bit of Tokyo Twilight), and virtually all of his films deal with this in one form or another. Hou, whose films are often very un-Ozu-like in terms of the dramatic conflict, does a wonderful job adopting Ozu's style. The composition of the family scenes, shot at tatami-level from an almost voyeuristic point outside of the room (door frames often take up a portion of the screen), can be found in nearly all of Ozu's films. There's also a tremendous attention to detail, including several items that appear multiple times and in multiple places throughout the film -- clocks, umbrellas, fans, and even milk. There are extensive shots of the complex network of trains that run through Tokyo, and a fair portion of the film is set either on trains or at train stations. (Hajime even creates computer art that envisions him floating inside a womb of trains.) Though Hou doesn't take advantage of 360-degree space within a single scene (as Ozu often did), he does use this, with interesting contextual effect, in two different scenes set in Hajime's bookstore. Filmbrain was discussing Café Lumière with a fellow film friend (somebody better versed in both directors) who felt that it was neither Ozu- or Hou-esque enough, and the resulting hybrid left him a bit cold. He would have preferred that the film contained more of the trademark elements one usually finds in a Hou film. Though Filmbrain concedes it's not a perfect film, there are some moments of pure poetry that rank up there with Hou's best. In particular, the dinner scene where the father is unable to say a single word to his daughter, and the final ten minutes of the film, which, without a line dialog, speaks volumes about the future of the characters. Perhaps it's best to consider Café Lumière as cinema qua cinema. In that context, it is without a doubt one of this year's best cinematic experiences. At the moment the film is without distribution, which is a crime. Let's hope that is soon remedied. (Wellspring -- you've bought everything else. . .) Café Lumière is showing at the NYFF on Saturday, October 16 @ 4:00PM. Filmbrain is giving away two tickets -- they are still available!

Comments

[wayne]

I think that Flowers of Shanghai is way overrated, but that could be because I've only seen it on DVD on my laptop instead of on film in a darkened theatre.

Is 2046 showing at the NY film festival? 2046 has already been theatrically released here in Asia and from what I can tell, it's a bit different from what was shown at Venice.

[FIlmbrain]

You probably should give Flowers of Shanghai a chance in the cinema. Not a laptop movie.

As for 2046, it was not in the festival becuase Wong Kar-wai pulled it after Cannes to tweak it some more. I read the review in Variety last week -- they said it is 4 minutes longer than the Cannes cut, and the music has been changed.

[phyrephox]

I was initially disappointed by this film, but it grew on me immediately after leaving the theater and now I think I place it below only Woman is the Future of Man as my favorites of the festival. The delicate, dual foci of Yoko's family issues and contemplations on time (Yoko looking to the past, Hijime to the present; both a bit obvlivious to the future) are wonderfully evoked, and thematically in tune with Ozu. A nice review Filmbrain.

[Ian Johnston]

As 2046 is already on general release in Asia (just seen it for a second time in an attempt to get over my initial disappointment), there must be other reasons for its non-inclusion in the NYFF.

[phyrephox]

There is. From what I recall, Wong wasn't finished with his updated version by the deadline of the festival acceptence, even though he was explicitly invited.

[Dag Sodtholt]

Filmbrain's review states: "The long takes, aesthetic composition, and even Hou's occasional subject matter (family issues, generational conflicts) can all be traced back to the works of the Japanese master".

This is total baloney. Ozu never used long takes, except for some scenes in THE BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF THE TODA FAMILY (made during the war). I think you must be mixing up Ozu and Mizoguchi (you're not the first), which does not reflect well on your abilities as a critic.

[Dag Sodtholt]

After having looked at the Filmbrain site for a bit after my remark, I think I will apologize for the tone of the last part of my previous remark. Filmbrain seems in fact to be a critic of fine taste, especially in Korean film! I still think he is totally wrong about Ozu being a long-take director though. Look for TURNING GATE by Hong Sang-soo, which Filmbrain admirably admires, for a film of that sort - as far as I remember, every scene is shot in a long, flowing take...

[Owen Cox]

I saw Café Lumière this afternoon in Paris where it is released in three or four theaters (it got excellent reviews — deservedly). A thick, translucent flow of slightly unquiet lives, with a wonderful use of noises, grunts, half-mumbled words and Jang Wenye's music. And the sounds of trains. Why can't we French (not to mention the Americans) learn from this superlative sense of hearing and stop cloying our films with bad music ?