Synopsis
Two young brothers become the leaders of a gang of kids in their neighborhood. Ozu's charming film is a social satire that draws from the antics of childhood as well as the tragedy of maturity.
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Cast
- Tatsuo SaitōYoshi
- Tomio AokiKeiji
- Mitsuko YoshikawaHaha
- Hideo SugawaraRyoichi
- Takeshi SakamotoJuuyaku
- Teruyo HayamiFujin
- Seiichi KatôKodomo
- Shoichi KofujitaDelivery Boy
- Seiji NishimuraTeacher
- Zentaro IijimaFriend
Recommendations
- 100
The New York Times
That it is more -- a small masterpiece, perfect in design and execution -- almost goes without saying, but the film’s profundity and its charm go hand in hand. - 100
Slate
Qualifies as one of my favorite movies of all time. This 1932 masterpiece, now digitally restored with retranslated subtitles and a newly recorded score, is a silent film that doesn't feel silent at all. - 80
Time Out
Watching the first hour of I Was Born, But… (unspooling with a bright, new piano score by Donald Sosin) might remind you of a subdued “Our Gang” skit, and not unpleasantly. - 80
Village Voice
The film retains a measure of tempered hope, born not simply from the father's command-cum-wish to his slumbering offspring ("Don't become a miserable apple-polisher like me, boys"), but also from a final act of youthful compassion that binds Ozu's intensely human characters in glass-half-full solidarity.
