Friday, April 8, 2011
All in the Family
Tokyo Story shows the relationship between two aged parents and their grown children. On a visit to Tokyo to visit their children, who turn out to be more busy and less successful than they suppossed, they are unceremoniously shuffled from child to child and eventually to a resort. By the end of their trip, the mother relies on the kindness of her son's widow and the father becomes drunk and is escorted by the police to his daughter's home. Returning home the mother becomes sick and dies. The children return for the funeral and leave their father alone. How accurate is this portrayal of family life? Is this a "slice of life" (and part of the reason it feels as if "nothing happens")? Does this remind you of your family? Is this how families work? Focus on one scene or character and discuss what it tells us about the dynamics of family life.
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The portrayal of family life in Tokyo Story is perhaps the most interesting part of the movie in my opinion. Although not much happens in the film as far as action or plot, this aspect of the film drew me in and made me enjoy the film. The family in the movie is dramatically different then my own family, which is what made it so interesting for me to watch. The way the movie is filmed makes it feel as if you are just looking through a window into this family’s life. The viewers get a real sense of their family dynamic, and the relationships between each character in the film. The cultural aspect of this was very interesting to me because the Asian culture shown is almost completely opposite of the culture of my own family. Also, because of the simple cinematography there was a strong sense of reality to the film, as if you were truly listening to the private conversations going on between the different family members. The moments shown in this film are unique because they are so personal. Moments like those depicting in the film are the simple moments that people usually keep to themselves, so being able to observe this family in such a deep way throughout Tokyo Story is what makes it such a unique and enthralling film.
ReplyDeleteTokyo Story is a slice of life of the average family. The parents expect their kids to succeed and become something great. They imagine elaborate possibilities for their futures, but its usually too unrealistic. The children disappoint their parents. They do not become the great minds of the next generation. They don't take care of their parents as great as their parents expect. They live average lives. We can see this in the scene where the father gets drunk at the bar. He talks about how he expected and had thought his son would become a doctor, but his son is only a family doctor for the neighborhood. The other guys at the bar agree- their children did not grow up to be as they liked. Some of them have temperamental issues or drinking problems and others don't respect or care for their parents in their old age.
ReplyDeleteThis does remind me of my family. My parents are both doctors and expected my two older sisters to possibly pursue a career in medicine. However, both of them have decided to follow different paths. I think parents in general believe that their children could become extraordinary, but, to their dismay, not all of them achieve this in the end.
Tokyo Story is a perfect example of what a typical family could be like down the line. The parents grow old, but still attempt to keep in touch and visit. The children do not live up to the parents fullest beliefs, but are still doing fine and are busy with their own lives. Too busy to really pay attention to things like their parents trying to visit and be friendly. But this film also shows that the closest people to you may not be directly blood related. Their widowed daughter-in-law was the only person who showed them much compassion in Tokyo. However, as soon as the mother died, immediately everyone cares about everything, including possesions.
ReplyDeleteWhile this may not happen in every household, it is fairly similar to most of them. Kids become older and have to lead their own lives, but don't fully appreciate what they had until it's gone. This is not what happens in my family, as my mother will go out of her way to keep in touch with relatives. People will live their lives how they please, so it cannot be told that they will all ignore what truly matters, but it is always a possibility.
While I don't think that this is a portrayl of family life is like now I do believe that it is an accurate portrayl of how family life could be like once the children have gone out on their own and gotten jobs and things of that nature. So often do children grow old and start to forget about their family or become so wrapped up in their own life that they don't make time for what is really important. With that being said this does not at all remind me of how my family works and I hope that with me going off to college and starting my "adult life" that this is not what become of me so far as the relationship with my family goes. I mean the children in the Tokyo Story didn't even stay with their father after their mother died. They went to the funeral and back out into their lives and to me that is just kind of low and I hope that no matter how busy I get that I would always have time to be there for my mother and the rest of my family. While I thought that nothing really went on in the film I do believe that it could serve as a lesson to all those children in the world who act this way towards their family and to all those children like myself who are about to leave the home and could potentially end up acting like this. It definitely teaches viewers that family should be the most important thing in your life and that you should never forget about those who were there for you and those who really cared about you!
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