Tuesday, October 04, 2005

 

Women of Tokyo

Ozu, 1933.

Screened October 2nd at the NWFF, with a live score performed by the Wayne Horvitz Jazz Ensemble.

Score:6

A nice little melodrama, but my least favorite Ozu so far by a fair margin. At 47 minutes, things move at a steady clip. Actually, the arc of the story is spare enough that the story itself moves at a slow to moderate pace. It's the quickness of the camera I object to. Shots that normally would linger thoughtfully are over in a couple seconds. This is less than satisfying for those accostumed to Ozu's pacing. I was utterly baffled by the non-sequitor final scene with the annoying reporters walking down the street.

I'd rate my experience well higher than a 6, however due to the marvelous live score, written specifically for the film by the performing musicians. NWFF rocks.

Comments:
How was Wayne Horvitz?
 
Very cool. He played piano, with bass, vibes, bassoon and lotsa snare drums. It was a great score; should've been anachronistic but it fit the film quite well. They kept it pretty low key; they were clearly there to accompany the film and not draw too much attention to themselves.
 
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