--- title: "Tokyo Story: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/tokyo-story/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/tokyo-story" critics_score: 89 critics_reviews: 9 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): what the critics said Critics' score 89 from 9 reviews: 9 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. 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. ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 10 April 2012. 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 the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/tokyo-story-is-a-masterpiece-7418084.html) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 16 October 1972. 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 the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/tokyo-story-1953) ## Slant Magazine Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 24 November 2010. 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 the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/tokyo-story/) ## The Independent Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 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 the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/tokyo-story-u-1854585.html) ## The New Yorker — Penelope Gilliatt Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 April 1972. 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 the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1972/04/08/the-current-cinema-25) ## Total Film Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 16 January 2004. 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 the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/tokyo-story-review/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw 31 August 2023. 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 the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/aug/31/tokyo-story-review-yasujiro-ozu) ## Collider — Adam Grinwald Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 20 May 2022. 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 the review](https://collider.com/tokyo-story-ultimate-film-about-family/) ## Eye for Film — Scott Macdonald Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 27 May 2007. 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 the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/tokyo-story-film-review-by-scott-macdonald) ## Paste — Robert Davis Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 31 March 2004. 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 the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/tokyo/tokyo-story) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/tokyo-story.md