Early Spring
1956 · Movie · 145 min · ★ 7.5 · 92% critics
In postwar Tokyo, a weary office worker and his spouse drift through a strained, routine marriage shaped by grief and daily pressures. When he seeks comfort outside the relationship, the film quietly explores loneliness, work, and the difficulty of reconnecting.
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Watch free on Plex — also streaming on HBO Max, TCM and The Criterion Channel.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Original title
- 早春
- Years
- 1956
- Release date
- 1956-01-29
- Language
- Japanese
- Runtime
- 145 min
- Critic score
- 92/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.5/10 (97 votes)
About
You may like this if you enjoy patient, reflective relationship dramas with everyday detail, especially if you liked The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice or An Autumn Afternoon; Not for you if you want fast pacing or big dramatic fireworks.
Pros: subtle emotional depth; humane character drama; rich social detail | Cons: very slow pace; long running time; slight story
Themes
- tokyo, japan
- co-workers relationship
- extramarital affair
- failing marriage
- post war japan
- homewrecker
- adulterous husband
Cast & crew
Chikage Awashima
as Masako Sugiyama
Ryō Ikebe
as Shôji Sugiyama
Keiko Kishi
as Chiyo Kaneko aka Goldfish
Teiji Takahashi
as Taizo Aoki
Chishū Ryū
as Kiichi Onodera
So Yamamura
as Yutaka Kawai
Haruko Sugimura
as Tamako Tamura
- TF
Takako Fujino
as Terumi Aoki
Daisuke Katō
as Sakamoto
Masami Taura
as Koichi Kitagawa
Directed by Yasujirō Ozu