20 Foreign Language Movies You Must See Before You Die
6. Tokyo Story
Country: Japan.
Plot: In Post-War Japan, an ageing couple go to Tokyo to visit their grown-up children, but their children are wrapped up in their careers and have little time to spend with them.
This rich, stirring and superbly acted Japanese family drama has remained near the top of the Sight and Sound Greatest Films list for a very long time and it's certainly not without reason.
With its slow pace, realistic tone, exceptionally low-key vibe and understated (yet terrific) cinematography, Tokyo Story is a masterpiece of subtlety. It captures the complexity, pathos and drama of everyday life without ever going over-the-top or becoming manipulative, but even so, it's never dull and makes its lengthy run-time fly past.
It is also, despite its subtlety, extremely powerful and hits with the force of a sledgehammer by the end. This is, simply put, one of the finest drama films of all time and it also features what is, low-key, one of the best quotes in film history.
"Isn't life disappointing?" a character asks. "Yes, it is." replies her sister-in-law. Was there ever a more truthful line of film dialogue?
It's films like this which reaffirm Japanese cinema as arguably the finest national cinema of all time.