---
title: "Tokyo Story"
year: 1953
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/tokyo-story"
fi1m_id: "tokyo-story"
imdb_id: "tt0046438"
tmdb_id: 18148
wikidata_id: "Q26060"
fi1m_score: 92
critics_score: 89
critics_reviews: 9
published: "2026-09-12"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:03.109016+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Tokyo Story (1953)

Directed by Yasujirō Ozu · 2h 17m · Drama

## Identity

Tokyo Story

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/tokyo-story
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** tokyo-story
- **IMDb ID:** tt0046438
- **TMDB ID:** 18148
- **Wikidata ID:** Q26060
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046438/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/18148, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q26060

**Fi1m score: 92** · Critics 89 from 9 reviews

*In a sentence:* Two parents come to visit, and we start reconsidering how busy we really are

> Yasujirō Ozu’s family drama makes ordinary neglect almost unbearable without turning anyone into a villain. Chishū Ryū and Setsuko Hara are finely judged, though the deliberate pace needs a little patience at first.

## Synopsis

Shukichi and Tomi Hirayama are an ageing couple visiting their adult children, who struggle to make room for them in their lives. Chishū Ryū and Chieko Higashiyama play the parents, whose arrival brings the family’s competing demands into view. Noriko, their widowed daughter-in-law, played by Setsuko Hara, offers them kindness while their own children seem less willing to put themselves out. Directed by Yasujirō Ozu, the drama follows the visit through ordinary exchanges between parents and children. Everyday obligations and small gestures reveal how far the family members have drifted apart, even while they are together.

## Review

*Tokyo Story* is an exceptional family drama, and it deserves an evening without interruptions. Yasujirō Ozu takes an ageing couple’s visit to their adult children and lets ordinary discourtesy become painful enough to make us squirm. The premise promises little incident, and the film’s patience may initially seem excessive. Stay with it: the people become so recognisable that their smallest failures of care start to hurt.

In a family drama, we often wait for the accusation that will make everybody say what they mean. Ozu and co-writer Kōgo Noda find plenty to trouble us in the ordinary business of parents and children spending time together. The younger generation’s ingratitude is mild enough to sound defensible, which makes it harder to dismiss. We recognise the convenience of treating an obligation as somebody else’s problem. The writing leaves room for that recognition without insisting that every lapse proves a rotten character.

Chishū Ryū’s Shukichi Hirayama is especially moving because we can read disappointment without being invited to pity him. Ryū makes the father’s reserve feel like a habit acquired over a lifetime, and his affection remains persuasive even when we find the children difficult to forgive. Chieko Higashiyama is equally convincing as Tomi Hirayama, giving the couple’s visit emotional weight beyond its modest events. We believe that these two people have spent years accommodating others, including each other.

Setsuko Hara’s Noriko, the couple’s widowed daughter-in-law, offers the kindness that their own children struggle to give. We were moved by her attention to the visitors, because Hara makes caring for them seem such an ordinary thing to do. After the children’s mild ingratitude, we find ourselves grateful for behaviour that ought to be unremarkable, and slightly embarrassed by that gratitude. Hara gives Noriko enough individuality that we remain interested in her as a person, beyond what her generosity tells us about the family.

Cinematographer Yûharu Atsuta keeps the camera still, giving us time to attend to people whose feelings require some watching. Yoshiyasu Hamamura’s editing asks for similar attention to the small exchanges; we sometimes notice the slowness, but rarely stop caring. Tatsuo Hamada’s production design makes the domestic setting feel credible and inhabited, without asking us to admire it. We find Takanobu Saitō’s music less necessary when the performances already carry so much feeling. A little less encouragement from the score would have suited us.

At 137 minutes, the film gives impatience plenty of opportunity, and some ordinary exchanges can initially seem too slight to warrant such attention. We found ourselves waiting for the plot to announce itself before accepting that the visit was enough. That adjustment is worth making, though we would not pretend the pace disappears as an obstacle for everybody. Choose it when there is time to settle, rather than expecting it to compete with a distracted evening.

*Fi1m score 92, published 12 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The reviews are uniformly positive, with praise centred on Ozu’s compassion for ordinary people and his restraint in depicting family disappointment. Most critics find the film deeply affecting because it lets small gestures, everyday encounters and quiet dialogue carry the emotion. The still camera and deceptively simple storytelling receive repeated attention, alongside performances that seem lived rather than acted. The recurring judgment is that its sadness develops without sentimentality or melodrama.

There is little disagreement in these reviews, and no substantial reservation emerges from the supplied accounts. The differences are chiefly matters of emphasis: some concentrate on generational distance and social change, others on kindness within strained family relationships. The Guardian particularly praises Setsuko Hara’s decency and courage as Noriko, while The New Yorker highlights Chishū Ryū’s expressive performance. The narrow spread of assessments reflects shared admiration rather than a split over the film’s quiet approach.

## Straight answers

**Is Tokyo Story worth watching?**

*Tokyo Story* is worth watching for anyone with a patient evening to give it, and we scored it 92. Yasujirō Ozu makes an ageing couple's visit to their grown children quietly painful without turning anyone into a villain, and Chishū Ryū and Setsuko Hara are finely judged. The deliberate pace asks something of you at first; choose a night without distractions.

**How long is Tokyo Story, and what is it rated?**

*Tokyo Story* runs 2h 17m. It is a drama film.

**Where can I watch Tokyo Story in the US?**

*Tokyo Story* is streaming on HBO Max, Hulu and The Roku Channel in the US. It leaves HBO Max on 30 September. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How does Tokyo Story compare to Late Spring?**

*Tokyo Story* and [*Late Spring*](https://film.one/film/late-spring) are both Yasujirō Ozu family dramas with Chishū Ryū and Setsuko Hara, and both make ordinary family pressures hard to watch. *Late Spring* is the more concentrated of the two, a father and daughter rather than a whole family, and we recommend it strongly. *Tokyo Story* is the broader and, for us, the more exceptional film.

**What should I watch after Tokyo Story?**

After *Tokyo Story*, try [*Late Spring*](https://film.one/film/late-spring) (1949, Fi1m 92): More Ozu, with family affection complicated by expectations nobody finds easy to challenge. Then [*Make Way for Tomorrow*](https://film.one/film/make-way-for-tomorrow) (1937, Fi1m 91): Another ageing couple discovers how awkwardly love can fit around their children’s convenience; and [*A Separation*](https://film.one/film/a-separation) (2011, Fi1m 93): Family obligations become harder to judge as each person’s reasons grow more persuasive.

### Reviews we read (10)

- **Evening Standard** (95/100, inferred): The critic calls the 1953 classic an inalienable masterpiece about the breakdown of family life. Ozu's incomparable compassion and understanding, without sentimentality, are singled out for praise. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/tokyo-story-is-a-masterpiece-7418084.html)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (90/100, inferred): Ebert calls the film a true and universal tale of ordinary people and an unanticipated death that reveals much about life. He singles out Ozu's objective, restrained style that lets viewers gradually understand the characters through small gestures rather than manipulation. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/tokyo-story-1953)
- **Slant Magazine** (90/100, inferred): The critic regards Tokyo Story as one of Ozu’s most complete summations of his art and a work that reveals the director as the most human of filmmakers. The review singles out Ozu’s focus on ordinary, mundane moments and subtle shades of character as what makes the film deeply affecting. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/tokyo-story/)
- **The Independent** (90/100, inferred): The critic finds Ozu's 1953 film a portrait of familial relations marked by indefinable melancholy. The unshowy tenderness and actors who seem to be simply living are singled out for praise. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/tokyo-story-u-1854585.html)
- **The New Yorker**, Penelope Gilliatt (85/100, inferred): Gilliatt praises the film as a calm-surfaced tale of an aging couple visiting mildly ungrateful children that speaks with moral brilliance about family and a changing society. She singles out the widowed daughter-in-law's kindness and Chishū Ryū's expressive performance as the grandfather. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1972/04/08/the-current-cinema-25)
- **Total Film** (85/100, inferred): The critic praises Ozu's distillation of human relationships into quiet, devastating poignancy with a serenely still camera. The purity of emotion and tear-streamer ending are singled out. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/tokyo-story-review/)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The critic praises Ozu’s 1953 film as a stunning work of art whose exquisite sadness remains overwhelming on re-release. They single out Setsuko Hara’s heartbreakingly decent and courageous performance as Noriko for particular praise. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/aug/31/tokyo-story-review-yasujiro-ozu)
- **Collider**, Adam Grinwald (90/100, inferred): The critic calls Tokyo Story the ultimate film about family, praising its empathetic portrayal of generational conflicts and the inevitability of change without descending into melodrama. [Read](https://collider.com/tokyo-story-ultimate-film-about-family/)
- **Eye for Film**, Scott Macdonald (90/100, inferred): The critic finds Tokyo Story a universal, heartbreaking masterpiece that mirrors everyday family life and generational gaps through its simple storytelling and static camera work. They single out the film's serene, sincere imagery and precise dialogue for particular praise. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/tokyo-story-film-review-by-scott-macdonald)
- **Paste**, Robert Davis (85/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as wonderful and highly relevant to contemporary American family life, praising Ozu's subtle, deceptively simple style and its emotional honesty about distance between parents and children. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/tokyo/tokyo-story)

## Details

- **Director:** Yasujirō Ozu
- **Director:** Yasujirō Ozu
- **Screenplay:** Kōgo Noda, Yasujirō Ozu
- **Cinematography:** Yûharu Atsuta
- **Editor:** Yoshiyasu Hamamura
- **Music:** Takanobu Saitō
- **Production design:** Tatsuo Hamada
- **Costume design:** Taizô Saitô
- **Producer:** Takeshi Yamamoto
- **Cast:** Chishū Ryū as Shukichi Hirayama; Chieko Higashiyama as Tomi Hirayama; Setsuko Hara as Noriko Hirayama; Haruko Sugimura as Shige Kaneko; So Yamamura as Koichi Hirayama; Kuniko Miyake as Fumiko Hirayama; Kyōko Kagawa as Kyoko Hirayama; Eijirō Tōno as Numata
- **Runtime:** 2h 17m
- **Release (the US):** 13 March 1972
- **Genres:** Drama
- **Also in:** [The classics, without the homework](https://film.one/collections/classics-without-the-homework.md)
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqO0d3328Do

## Where to watch in the US

- HBO Max: streaming, leaving 2026-09-30
- Hulu: add-on, hd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd

*Checked 2026-09-12.*

Also available in: IT, JP, TR, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Late Spring* (1949), Fi1m 92: More Ozu, with family affection complicated by expectations nobody finds easy to challenge — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/late-spring.md)
- *Make Way for Tomorrow* (1937), Fi1m 91: Another ageing couple discovers how awkwardly love can fit around their children’s convenience — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/make-way-for-tomorrow.md)
- *Still Walking* (2008): A family gathering where the food is easier to offer than forgiveness
- *A Separation* (2011), Fi1m 93: Family obligations become harder to judge as each person’s reasons grow more persuasive — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-separation.md)
- *The Quiet Girl* (2022), Fi1m 84: Patient attention to a child makes small acts of care matter enormously — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-quiet-girl.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/tokyo-story