The Cinematheque

35mm Print

“[Naruse’s] late masterpiece … Despite the seeming simplicity of this tragic story, its psychological complexity is bottomless. No less remarkable are the abrupt, unsentimental editing and the remarkable mise-en-scène.”

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

A tender, touching, and trenchant late work by Naruse, Yearning stars Takamine Hideko in a Locarno-winning performance as hard-working Reiko, who was made a war widow just six months into marriage. In the nearly two decades since, she has laboured to build up a small sake business that supports her and her in-laws. Now, competition from new-fangled supermarkets is threatening their livelihood. Reiko, meanwhile, must fend off the taboo attentions of her carousing brother-in-law Koji (Kayama Yuzo), a man 12 years her junior. The script is by Zenzo Matsuyama, Takamine’s husband. The film’s plot (war widow and philandering man) and social theme (the impact of Japan’s rapid modernization on traditional values) surface elsewhere in Naruse’s work, but reach a refinement here indicative of the director’s matured style. Edward Yang, a great admirer of Naruse, regarded the ending of Yearning as among the most moving in all of cinema.

In Japanese with English subtitles

“The director’s fullest and most expressive achievement.”

Keith Uhlich, Slant Magazine

“One of Naruse’s most stunning achievements.”

Matthew Thrift, BFI