Summer Clouds
Dan Sallitt
thought it was too diffuse when I first saw it, because this time it
seemed if anything too well organized around its theme, which is the
passing of a patriarchal, family-centered way of life and the onset of
an individualistic ethos that dooms collective enterprises like the
family farm. I really enjoyed the early scenes with Nakamura, who was
equal parts oppressor and amiable grownup kid; and I was really struck
by the extreme but beautiful illuminated backgrounds in the romantic
scenes between Iwashima and Isao Kimura. About 75 minutes in, I
started to feel that the scenes were becoming verbal recapitulations of
established thematic points; and the ellipses in the last hour didn't
keep me from feeling that the theme was driving the characters. I was
especially unconvinced by Nakamura's sale of his land - and, in
general, I felt that some tension left the movie as that character's
power ebbed. Once again, Naruse saves his "kicker" for the final
scene: Iwashima, whom we originally took for a force of individualistic
change, is actually old school, one of the dwindling few who can be
counted upon to sacrifice her happiness for the survival of her (hated)
community. As in ANZUKKO, it would take a subtle eye to anticipate
this kicker - I think Naruse wants these developments to be partly
foreshadowed and partly surprising. I think of the film fondly, though
not as an unqualified success.
Michael Kerpan
http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=1908
;~}
dka...@gmail.com
a fan of the film. Here's the note I made on it at the time:
At first I was having the same problem with this that I had with
Flowing, namely the large cast makes it difficult for Naruse to get
deeper into his characters, and this film delves with incredibly detail
into the entwined motivations of lower-class peasants over family,
land, and money, often at the expensive of emotion and
characterization. But then I realized the amazing formal structure of
the film: the film's main character (Akwashima Chikage as Yae) is given
almost as much screen time as the rest of the cast, but her situation,
her psychology, her thinking, her inner turmoil, and finally her
incredibly subtle decision made by the film's end are almost entirely
defined by the other characters in the movie. In other words, by
broadly charting a whole range of people facing a universal situation
(the decline of a land-owning/farming extended family) from various
vantage points (age, gender, generation, family relations, ambition,
the pull of city life), Naruse, with a stunning lack of screen time,
allows every small detail to trickle into our understanding of Yae.
While her most personal moments, such as her affair with a married man,
are treated and photographed in a concise, stylized manner, by the
film's end one seems to know everything there is to know about her as a
person, even though Naruse seemingly gives her little more than any
other in the film.
Zach Campbell
CLOUDS, and my analysis is going to be pretty
superficial as it is, going off of one viewing. I
think Daniel's basically right that the film makes it
difficult to get into his characters. I got the sense
that the film was doing what people used to say was
one of Hou's trademarks (back when Hou was more exotic
to us): you don't always know what has happened in a
timeline until several scenes after it would have
happened. I think Naruse sacrifices (immediate)
intelligibility in this film not completely dissimilar
in intent from the way Pialat structures his films,
trying to create something from the difference between
subtly jarring and contradictory scenes. Dan
mentioned earlier that the old father's selling his
land was a bit weird, and I think it's true--it comes
all of the sudden. But given the trajectory of the
plot, it seems sound that his character would
eventually do that. Naruse simply elided the handful
of short scenes that show him imploding.
So I think a lot of the strength of SUMMER CLOUDS
comes from extremely wise employment of indirection
and withholding. Daniel characterized this with
regard to the character Yae's psychology, the way
she's 'drawn' via social portrait.
To me Naruse's balance is superb in the film; it took
a while to get used to, but I thought he handled lines
of character psychology and emotion very clearly and
braided them together in interesting ways. The
romance between the banker son and his cousin plays
out sweetly, and feels organic in the plot, but it's
not saccharine--it's clear that his initial intentions
toward her are sexual, and she's reciprocative, thus
avoiding picturesque chastity. And overall Naruse
avoids doing something easy, like having Yae sell her
own land for her nephew's auto mechanic schooling and
joining the journalist (who might miraculously leave
his wife) in the city. So what we have bears the
feeling ultimately not of a contained story but
chapter in an ongoing chronicle. Which I don't think
many films, even 'family sagas,' often do.
--Zach
Michael Kerpan
my copy is only so-so -- and has only Spanish subs. My sense, when I
last saw it, was that, despite the sprawling cast of characters, the
film was put together quite well. I thought Awashima was quite
effective as the center point of the tale.
Michael Kerpan
could follow it easily. The bad news -- my copy choked about 7 minutes
before the end -- I may need to buy the Spanish DVD after all.
I really liked this -- not one of Naruse's most overwhelming films, but
interesting and moving. I'm pretty sure Takahata had this film in mind
when he made his own rural masterpiece, "Omohide poro poro" (Only
Yesterday).