446 An Autumn Afternoon

[Michael Kerpan]

There's just other filmmakers who are begging to have their stuff put out AT ALL, while Ozu has seemingly every other Eclipse set and a bunch of Criterions, there are now something like 13 of his films available from CC? Just too much too soon.

With all due respect, Criterion's jump into Ozu was long delayed. They went quite a few years after obtaining rights before issuing much (possibly for good reasons -- like the fact that the best available sources turned out to be in far worse shape than they ever dreamed possible).

I never really faulted them for the slowness of their initial release pace -- and I can't see faulting them when they finally start making up for lost time either.

There are many other Japanese filmmakers (not to mention ones from elsewhere) who DESERVE wider exposure. But Criterion already owns rights to the Ozu films -- and may even have some obligation to Shochiku to actually get much of this stuff into print.

This is a gem of a film -- and one of the easiest Ozu films to simply enjoy. I can't imagine that too many Criterion enthusiasts are going to mind the fact that they can now add this delightful film to their own collections.

[sidehacker]

It's not like Ozu has as many releases as Kurosawa, Renoir, or Bergman. Still, I'm a bit worried about how Criterion will deal with the color here. Even in the Eclipse release, there's a few films that border on looking red-ish.

[Michael Kerpan]

Criterion's track record in tacklingt Ozu in color is indeed dodgy. I can only hope that they don't blow the color yet again with this. They seem to be pretty stubborn about handling color in Ozu in a way that differs from most Japanese and European releases.

[colinr0380]

This is a gem of a film -- and one of the easiest Ozu films to simply enjoy. I can't imagine that too many Criterion enthusiasts are going to mind the fact that they can now add this delightful film to their own collections.

Not to mention that it was obvious that a full Criterion edition of Ozu's final film was high on the coming soon list as soon as the Late Ozu box was released without it. It was just a question of when it was coming (and in the meantime we got the pleasant surprise of the Silent Ozu box, though I still have to pick that up!)

As someone who had been holding off from the UK discs for a long time, I'm very happy! This means that the films comprising volumes 1, 3 and 4 of the UK Tartan Ozu sets have now been released by Criterion (and that does not include the silent version of A Story Of Floating Weeds and the films in the Silent Ozu box). The only outstanding UK DVD set now remains volume 2 of the Tartan series which featured Record Of A Tenement Gentleman and The Flavour Of Green Tea Over Rice.

[Michael Kerpan]

The only outstanding UK DVD set now remains volume 2 of the Tartan series which featured Record Of A Tenement Gentleman and The Flavour Of Green Tea Over Rice.

And I would rate that set as fairly outstanding. ;~}

I got it on sale at Amazon UK. I would be surprised if Criterion could do anything that would cause me to triple-dip for these films....

[Steven H]

No Yoshida doc yet, but I'm really interested to listen to the commentary (for a change). I guess the disc makes up for not having the Yoshida stuff by having an unforgettable turn by the man's wife, Okada Mariko, as the vivacious young thing who tells off the three men. I guess someone should mention that the translation of the film's title is completely wrong, and it should really be something like "The Taste of Autumn Mackerel", which I find much more evocative and interesting anyway (maybe Bordwell will let us know his favorite place to eat Mackerel in the second audio option?)

I hope some time is given to discussing the film he wrote after this, Raddishes and Carrots. A small part of me had hoped they'd get the rights to the adaptation of his script by Minoru Shibuya, whose film work I've become a little more familiar with and have enjoyed. The adaptation also has two of my favorite actresses of the period, Iwashita Shima (woman and mistress in Double Suicide) and Kaga Mariko (*the* Pale Flower) and Ryu Chishu of course. I have yet to find this in any form.

Now bring on the 40s Ozu! I'd like to hear the criterionforum.org gang tackling the overt propaganda and subversive ideas in the 40s stuff. They're some of his most striking, polarizing, and beautiful films.

[Michael Kerpan]

I guess someone should mention that the translation of the film's title is completely wrong, and it should really be something like "The Taste of Autumn Mackerel", which I find much more evocative and interesting anyway (maybe Bordwell will let us know his favorite place to eat Mackerel in the second audio option?)

Not really "mackerel" but "mackerel pike" or (more officially) "pacific saury".

Information is much easier to find about this fish now that wikipediahas a nice entry.

(Info was much harder to find 7 years ago).

[HerrSchreck]

Well it would be a wonderful makeup for the nonboxed version of the Ophuls if this stayed at the lower point.

Anticipating the CC's I held off of the PAL releases, esp after the bad feedback on the transfers.

HUGELY looking forward to Autumn Afternoon.. hopes they get this right and push out a definitive Ozu color release. How nice w that be (even though I still like FL WEEDS, debatable as the scheme may be..)

[mfunk9786]

Well it would be a wonderful makeup for the nonboxed version of the Ophuls if this stayed at the lower point.

Not to split hairs, but since people who care about the Ophuls releases aren't necessarily the people who care about this one, a lower price point for the Ophuls releases would be a wonderful makeup.

[HerrSchreck]

Sigh.. okay-- FOR THOSE WHO ARE INNARESTED IN BOTH RELEASES*

* qualifier for my post above to aid the "Get It?" Impaired.

...and, stunning: If the price point were lower on the Ophuls there'd be cough no need for a makeup on the Ophuls.

[jsteffe]

Criterion's track record in tacklingt Ozu in color is indeed dodgy. I can only hope that they don't blow the color yet again with this. They seem to be pretty stubborn about handling color in Ozu in a way that differs from most Japanese and European releases.

I recently saw the Janus Films 35mm print, which was pristine. The color balance decidedly favored greens and browns--perhaps this is a feature of the original Japanese film stock? Looking at the DVD Beaver comparison, I'd say the color on the print was more like the Panorama than the Madman R4 disc. At any rate, it will be interesting to compare these with the Criterion DVD transfer when it comes out.

I sure hope that Criterion respects the original look of the film, whatever that is supposed to be, and doesn't try to "correct" it for Western eyes.

[Michael Kerpan]

I recently saw the Janus Films 35mm print, which was pristine. The color balance decidedly favored greens and browns--perhaps this is a feature of the original Japanese film stock? Looking at the DVD Beaver comparison, I'd say the color on the print was more like the Panorama than the Madman R4 disc. At any rate, it will be interesting to compare these with the Criterion DVD transfer when it comes out.

I sure hope that Criterion respects the original look of the film, whatever that is supposed to be, and doesn't try to "correct" it for Western eyes.

Gee -- the Madman DVD doesn't look right to me at all -- rather like the AE End of Summer (though not so extreme)..

The Panorama DVD looks rather like the Shochiku one (i.e., pretty decent -- color-wise) -- but my favorite release (perhaps) was a short-lived French DVD (which did NOT have most of the "first reel" flaws found on the Shochiku-derived releases).

[ptmd]

I recently saw the Janus Films 35mm print, which was pristine. The color balance decidedly favored greens and browns--perhaps this is a feature of the original Japanese film stock?

I also saw the Janus 35mm print recently and I would agree that it was pristine and favored greens and browns, but this is not surprising given the use of Agfacolor (which is a German rather than a Japanese process). It's also worth pointing out that, to the best of my recollection, the colors in the Janus print were virtually identical to the Japanese print I saw in Tokyo several years ago. Since the Janus print is taken from the restored Schochiku negative, I think it is probably safe to assume that the Criterion disc should look very similar.

[jojo]

No Yoshida doc yet, but I'm really interested to listen to the commentary (for a change). I guess the disc makes up for not having the Yoshida stuff by having an unforgettable turn by the man's wife, Okada Mariko, as the vivacious young thing who tells off the three men.

I don't know if this thread lost me, but are we talking about this particular film or are you talking about the other "Autumn" film by Ozu? (Which was in the Late Ozu box)

[Steven H]

No Yoshida doc yet, but I'm really interested to listen to the commentary (for a change). I guess the disc makes up for not having the Yoshida stuff by having an unforgettable turn by the man's wife, Okada Mariko, as the vivacious young thing who tells off the three men.

I don't know if this thread lost me, but are we talking about this particular film or are you talking about the other "Autumn" film by Ozu? (Which was in the Late Ozu box)

Yes! I mistakenly inserted the Late Autumn scene into the latter film, and I apologize for the confusion. I can't believe I did that, it's one of my favorite scenes...

[jsteffe]

I also saw the Janus 35mm print recently and I would agree that it was pristine and favored greens and browns, but this is not surprising given the use of Agfacolor (which is a German rather than a Japanese process). It's also worth pointing out that, to the best of my recollection, the colors in the Janus print were virtually identical to the Japanese print I saw in Tokyo several years ago. Since the Janus print is taken from the restored Schochiku negative, I think it is probably safe to assume that the Criterion disc should look very similar.

Ah, but we're not just talking about a 35mm print, but a telecine transfer of a print! Others folks have complained that the Criterion transfers of other Ozu color films have shifted the color bias of the prints to more of a bluish tinge in order to make them look more "normal" for Western viewers. I haven't seen enough color Ozu films in 35mm to weigh in with any degree of confidence.

Anyway, I'm not sure if that is always the case. The Criterion disc of FLOATING WEEDS may well have been shifted towards the blue spectrum compared to UK DVD (see DVD Beaver's comparison). However, to my eyes the more recent Eclipse transfer of THE END OF SUMMER falls somewhere between the bluish AE edition and the decidedly greenish Panorma, at least based on the DVD Beaver frame grabs. And LATE AUTUMN in the same Eclipse set seems to show the greenish-brown bias that you claim was characteristic of Agfa film stock.

The upshot of all this is that we simply have to wait and see what Criterion will actually do with this particular transfer. I'm cautiously optimistic.

(BTW: If you want a good laugh, look at the technical specifications for THE END OF SUMMER on IMDb. It lists the film as being in Tohoscope! Yes kids, among other things, that Ozu was a master of widescreen composition.)

[rlendog]

I am really excited about this one. This has been at the top of my Criterion wish list for some time now. And after the release of the Late Ozu Eclipse set my DVD collection was just crying out for this one. I can't wait to preorder on Amazon. And I can't believe that anyone would be disappointed with the release of this gem, no matter how many other Ozu films have been released on DVD so far.

[Michael Kerpan]

The Eclipse release of "Late Autumn" was the closest match to the Japanese DVD version (of any of the color films in that set). End of Summer wad a good match (but not perfect), Equinox Flower was often noticeably (albeit not terribly) off.

[jsteffe]

The Eclipse release of "Late Autumn" was the closest match to the Japanese DVD version (of any of the color films in that set). End of Summer wad a good match (but not perfect), Equinox Flower was often noticeably (albeit not terribly) off.

Not to post something off-topic, but many, many thanks to you, Michael, for posting that generous selection of frame grabs from the Japanese DVD of EQUINOX FLOWER in the Eclipse Late Ozu thread! After looking at those tonight I became convinced of the superiority of the Japanese disc, at least in terms of color. You get the sense that Ozu deliberately worked for that delicate, restricted color scheme. It's striking how nicely the various colors play off each other within the individual shots. Here was one of the true masters of color in film!

May I send a gentle plea to Criterion to be extra nice to Ozu with their transfer of AN AUTUMN AFTERNOON?

[King of Kong]

Awesome news indeed. A definite pre-order.

[Jack Phillips]

Screen caps are up at the Beev. They've messed with the color again! Skin tones give it away every time. I don't think it is a deliberate choice they're making, though, rather an artifact of contrast boosting. But why is contrast boosting necessary?

No report on whether the frame skip in the first reel has been corrected . . .

[mfunk9786]

It looks a lot more realistic, they managed to remove that greenish haze over the whole film. This looks like an excellent transfer.

[HerrSchreck]

Screen caps are up at the Beev. They've messed with the color again! Skin tones give it away every time. I don't think it is a deliberate choice they're making, though, rather an artifact of contrast boosting. But why is contrast boosting necessary?

No report on whether the frame skip in the first reel has been corrected

I doubt contrast boosting is the cause. Contrast affects contrast, not color tone, especially with digital tools. And even if it were, it would still be tantamount to a positive action of color adjustment, because they allowed a secondary effect which is obvious to the most untrained of eyes to remain.

It's clearly deliberate, as it affects these 50's-70's color releases almost exclusively.. if were a boosting side effect the whole catalog of color releases woud be affected.

[Michael Kerpan]

It LOOKS like yellow reduction once again. I've no familiarity with the software used for color editing of digital video -- so I don't know how easily one can do such a thing.

Independent of the color change, it looks like some heavy duty contrast boosting may have been been carried out.

It is disappointing that the review does not discuss the presence or absence of the skipping problem (in the first reel or so) that have plagued all other DVDs to date (except the very first, short-lived French one).

[peerpee]

The Beaver caps are faulty (again), I'm afraid. Look at the red chair in the last shot, where he's playing golf. That red bleed is a byproduct of the grabbing software, and resizing the grabs, but it's not representative of the actual disc.