Overview
A poignant exploration of love and duty in a changing world, where the past lingers like a shadow.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- witty
- wistful
- restrained
- quiet evening
- classic cinema night
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a beautifully acted, emotionally subtle Ozu drama whose quiet humor and family tensions offer both aesthetic pleasure and universal human insight.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Ayako resists matchmaking because she feels responsible for her widowed mother, while the older generation treats marriage as an expected life transition.
The film emphasizes small jokes, pauses, knowing expressions, and composed interiors rather than overt melodrama.
The three widowers pursue bungled marriage plans with comic enthusiasm, but their interference places mother daughter and friendship bonds under strain.
Ayako's traditional sensibilities and her wish to prioritize her mother are set against changing postwar Japanese expectations around marriage and independence.
Films like Late Autumn, and why
Late Spring
shared focus on parent child bonds, marriage expectations, restrained domestic drama, and postwar Japanese social change
Tokyo Story
shared Ozu-style domestic observation, generational tension, quiet humor, and changing family customs
The Makioka Sisters
shared marriage matchmaking, female autonomy, intimate social comedy, and emotionally understated Japanese drama
An Autumn Afternoon
shared bittersweet family relationships, traditional values confronting modernity, and conversational ensemble drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Yasujirō Ozu
- Release Date
- 1960-11-13
- Runtime
- 128 min
- Rating
- 7.7 / 10 (179)
Cast
- Setsuko Hara
- Yōko Tsukasa
- Mariko Okada
- Keiji Sada
- Miyuki Kuwano
- Shinichirō Mikami
- Shin Saburi
- Chishū Ryū
- Nobuo Nakamura
- Kuniko Miyake
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Criterion Channel
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Late Autumn about?
- At a memorial gathering, three well-meaning friends meddle in a young woman's marriage prospects, unsettling a mother-daughter bond shaped by duty, affection, and postwar change.
- What is Late Autumn like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Late Autumn as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Late Autumn violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Late Autumn.
- What did critics think of Late Autumn?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a beautifully acted, emotionally subtle Ozu drama whose quiet humor and family tensions offer both aesthetic pleasure and universal human insight.
- Which films are like Late Autumn?
- Films with a similar feel include Late Spring, Tokyo Story, The Makioka Sisters, and An Autumn Afternoon.
- How long is Late Autumn?
- Late Autumn runs 128 minutes.
- Where can I watch Late Autumn?
- In United States, Late Autumn streams on Criterion Channel.
