Early Summer
1951 · Movie · NR · 125 min · ★ 7.8 · 97% critics
In postwar Tokyo, a working woman living with her extended family faces growing pressure to marry. As relatives push a practical match, she must weigh duty, independence, and her own feelings while the household around her quietly feels the strain of social change.
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Streaming on HBO Max.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Original title
- 麦秋
- Years
- 1951
- Release date
- 1951-10-03
- Language
- Japanese
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 125 min
- Critic score
- 97/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.8/10 (206 votes)
About
You may like this if you enjoy gentle family dramas about everyday life and social expectations, especially if Late Spring or An Autumn Afternoon worked for you; Not for you if you want fast pacing or high drama.
Pros: warm family dynamics; thoughtful social portrait; quietly moving moments | Cons: slow pacing; can feel dull; crowded character mix
Themes
- marriage proposal
- family relationships
- matchmaking
- tokyo, japan
- post world war ii
- post war japan
- family issues
- unmarried woman
Cast & crew
Setsuko Hara
as Noriko Mamiya
Chishū Ryū
as Koichi Mamiya
Chikage Awashima
as Aya Tamura
Kuniko Miyake
as Fumiko Mamiya
Ichirō Sugai
as Shukichi Mamiya
Chieko Higashiyama
as Shige Mamiya
Haruko Sugimura
as Tami Yabe
Kuniko Igawa
as Takako
Hiroshi Nihon'yanagi
as Kenkichi Yabe
Shūji Sano
as Sotaro Satake
Directed by Yasujirō Ozu