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Tokyo Story CC or Ikiru CC ?

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View Poll Results: Tokyo Story or Ikiru?
Tokyo Story
10
43.48%
Ikiru
13
56.52%
Voters: 23. You may not vote on this poll

Tokyo Story CC or Ikiru CC ?

Old 01-08-04, 02:31 PM
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Tokyo Story CC or Ikiru CC ?

Heard enough rave reviews about them.Haven't seen neither.Which one should I sink into first?
Old 01-08-04, 02:35 PM
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Ikiru, but it's a close one.
Old 01-08-04, 05:19 PM
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Get both. They're superb!
Old 01-08-04, 07:15 PM
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I saw Tokyo Story this weekend and was absolutely drawn into the movie, the characters and I cared about so many after viewing it. It was outstanding! I've seen Ikiru recently and enjoyed it, but Tokyo Story really moved me. A masterful job at directing by Ozu. I have to check out as much by Ozu as I can get in my Netflix queue.
Old 01-08-04, 09:09 PM
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Are these 2 movies good blind buys?
Old 01-08-04, 11:41 PM
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TS is wonderful. I still own neither on dvd. soon, though.
Old 01-12-04, 05:50 AM
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Another vote for Tokyo Story, but more for diveristy... If you're interested in foreign films, you probably already have a Kurosawa or two, but there aren't many Ozu DVDs out there and this film is considered his masterpiece.
Old 01-12-04, 11:58 AM
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I haven't seen Tokyo Story yet but I really enjoyed the Ikiru DVD. The movie is very powerful and the commentary by Stephen Price is pretty good too. I've watched the first documentary where Kurosawa describes his film-making process and it is excellent. I still need to watch the 2nd documentary which is Ikiru specific. Hope that helps at least a little bit.
Old 01-12-04, 04:42 PM
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Originally posted by Randy Miller III
Ikiru, but it's a close one.
Agreed....a VERY close call if i had to choose one or the other...as Matt said...get both..you certainly won't regret it
Old 01-12-04, 07:54 PM
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Frankly, Tokyo Story, by far.
Old 01-13-04, 08:25 AM
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davidlynchfan - judging from your cd collection you might want to check out Ichi the Killer instead

seriously,both of these films are classics in Japanese cinema and it wouldn't really matter which one you saw and/or bought first.
Old 01-13-04, 10:04 AM
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I love Kurosawa, but Ikiru just wore my patience out. How many close-ups of Takashi Shimura looking forlorn can one film hold? I felt like it was the same shot, over and over, after a while. Tokyo Story was far more involving, IMO. Both films have excellent DVDs, though.
Old 01-13-04, 03:27 PM
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Originally posted by bdots48
you might want to check out Ichi the Killer instead
Already did.

seriously,both of these films are classics in Japanese cinema and it wouldn't really matter which one you saw and/or bought first. [/B]
$25 bucks just sounds 3x cheaper than $50 for me at the moment.Plus I really want to know what I'm getting into first.

Looks like TS is barely leading at the moment.
TS looks more challenging and more of a serious movie buff's film while Ikiru looks easier to get into (considering Kurosawa is known for Westerner friendly).Then again I haven't check out Ozu's stuff before and I like to try new things as well.
Old 01-13-04, 08:06 PM
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Originally posted by davidlynchfan
Already did.



$25 bucks just sounds 3x cheaper than $50 for me at the moment.Plus I really want to know what I'm getting into first.

Looks like TS is barely leading at the moment.
TS looks more challenging and more of a serious movie buff's film while Ikiru looks easier to get into (considering Kurosawa is known for Westerner friendly).Then again I haven't check out Ozu's stuff before and I like to try new things as well.
Honestly: flip a coin. I currently prefer TS (slightly), but only because I've been on an enormous Ozu kick since last summer. A year ago I would have said "Ikiru". Either way, you can't lose.
Old 01-14-04, 08:09 AM
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OK, If I have to choose between the two - I'd also recommend Tokyo Story. (The Ikiru video is not the greatest - there's much more noise than usual with a Criterion transfer - white lines and some spots and crackles)

Last edited by bdots48; 01-14-04 at 01:44 PM.
Old 01-14-04, 08:28 AM
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This is incredibly tough, both are phenominal. I think the Ikiru disk set looks slightly better, but I like Tokyo Story slightly (verrrry slightly) more. I'd probably go for the Ikiru. I don't own either, yet, though.
Old 01-14-04, 11:26 AM
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I just watched the Ikiru disc...GET IT! And then get Tokyo Story later...
Old 01-16-04, 01:55 AM
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Originally posted by davidlynchfan

Looks like TS is barely leading at the moment.
TS looks more challenging and more of a serious movie buff's film while Ikiru looks easier to get into (considering Kurosawa is known for Westerner friendly).Then again I haven't check out Ozu's stuff before and I like to try new things as well.
Huh? I'd hardly consider any of Ozu's films "challenging". Ozu is a humanist, and his films are generally accessible (except maybe for works like "The Only Son"). Tokyo Story easily makes grown men cry.

Kurosawa is the Spielberg of Japan - that is why Westerners tend to prefer him. Or if you'd like, Spielberg is the Kurosawa of today. You get the idea.
Old 01-16-04, 07:24 AM
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Originally posted by Grimfarrow
Huh? I'd hardly consider any of Ozu's films "challenging". Ozu is a humanist, and his films are generally accessible (except maybe for works like "The Only Son"). Tokyo Story easily makes grown men cry.

Kurosawa is the Spielberg of Japan - that is why Westerners tend to prefer him. Or if you'd like, Spielberg is the Kurosawa of today. You get the idea.
That's exactly why I'm already quite familiar with Kurosawa's work whereas I have only heard of Yasujiru Ozu only recently and just felt sketched of his "possibly" overly complex social commentary, symbol-ism,etc. . that I may not be able to grasp.That no longer seem to be the case.

Was there any key feature(s) in Tokyo Story or major quirk in Ikiru that made you felt Tokyo Story is the clearcut superior film?

I'm sort of leaning toward Tokyo Story first since I'm more interested in finding what's more to this simple and rather uninspiring storyline.Feel it has abit more to prove to me than Ikiru and if I don't dig it then I'll ebay it and get Ikiru afterwards.
I'm quite sure they'll both be winners though.

Well,thanks for everyones comments thus far...and keep em comin'...
Old 01-16-04, 03:16 PM
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Originally posted by Skull
Are these 2 movies good blind buys?

For the elitist, those would be the best blind buys ever. But, for those who get their kicks off big explosions and bad-ass bad language (as in the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence shittified Bad Boys 2 --- aaah yeeeah), those would be the worst blind buys as these movies are intellectual trips... So if you want to be an aristocrat or elitist, gouge out your eyes and buying them right now! (Tokyo Story with a tad bit advantage over Ikiru...)

But then again Skull, you're just a skull.

Last edited by jayson1017; 01-16-04 at 03:28 PM.
Old 01-16-04, 03:17 PM
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Originally posted by Grimfarrow


Kurosawa is the Spielberg of Japan - that is why Westerners tend to prefer him. Or if you'd like, Spielberg is the Kurosawa of today. You get the idea.
Or Michael Jordan is the Babe Ruth of basketball. Or Babe Ruth is the Michael Jordan of baseball.

(hi Grimfarrow)
Old 01-16-04, 08:54 PM
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Originally posted by jayson1017
Or Michael Jordan is the Babe Ruth of basketball. Or Babe Ruth is the Michael Jordan of baseball.

(hi Grimfarrow)
Well, no. My comparison of Spielburg and Kurosawa is not meant to be entirely complimentary.
Old 01-16-04, 09:15 PM
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Originally posted by davidlynchfan
That's exactly why I'm already quite familiar with Kurosawa's work whereas I have only heard of Yasujiru Ozu only recently and just felt sketched of his "possibly" overly complex social commentary, symbol-ism,etc. . that I may not be able to grasp.That no longer seem to be the case.

Was there any key feature(s) in Tokyo Story or major quirk in Ikiru that made you felt Tokyo Story is the clearcut superior film?

I'm sort of leaning toward Tokyo Story first since I'm more interested in finding what's more to this simple and rather uninspiring storyline.Feel it has abit more to prove to me than Ikiru and if I don't dig it then I'll ebay it and get Ikiru afterwards.
I'm quite sure they'll both be winners though.

Well,thanks for everyones comments thus far...and keep em comin'...
Let's just say that Kurosawa is no Carl Dreyer - he should leave the facial close-ups to someone who knows the profundity of such a difficult shot. Plus, there isn't a false not in Falconetti's performance, but watching Shimura mime his way through shows exactly how Kurosawa was always at a loss when it comes to acting.

Tokyo Story, on the other hand, is perfectly framed, like a tableau, in every scene. And the tears are earned, not given just because you must already feel sorry for the guy.
Old 01-20-04, 09:52 PM
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Originally posted by jayson1017
For the elitist, those would be the best blind buys ever. But, for those who get their kicks off big explosions and bad-ass bad language (as in the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence shittified Bad Boys 2 --- aaah yeeeah), those would be the worst blind buys as these movies are intellectual trips... So if you want to be an aristocrat or elitist, gouge out your eyes and buying them right now! (Tokyo Story with a tad bit advantage over Ikiru...)

But then again Skull, you're just a skull.
Thanks for the advice.

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