The primary concept Tokyo Story toys with in its premise is the concept of mortality and time, as an elderly couple, Shukichi (Chischu Ryu) and Tomi (Chieko Higashiyama), travel to Tokyo to visit some of their offspring and grandchildren. The two are staying with their daughter, Shige (Haruko Sugimura) and son, Koichi (So Yamamura), who find the duo to be more of a burden than expected due to the busy schedule they have. More kindness is at least seen from their daughter-in-law, Noriko (Setsuko Hara), while the two take in the sights of the city, a visit to the spa and, in Shukichi's case, meet up with an old friend for some late-night drinking.
Once Shukichi comes home in a drunken stupor, Shige mentions that her father used to drink heavily in his younger years, much to her mothers dismay. But at this point in his life, both Shukichi and Tomi are looking to live it up (to use a mild version of that term) as much as they can as their own mortality sets in. This visit only helps illuminate how old they have gotten as they're able to now visit their actual grandchildren, they're old enough to have grandchildren now! The eerie prospect of so much of their own lives having gone by in what seems like a flash is the core element of Tokyo Story that lends it some really well-handled gravitas.
Death as a concept lingers over certain scenes, such as Tomi watching one of her grandchildren romp in the grass, like a dark cloud looming over a field. Even before it's revealed Tomi has a life-threatening disease, you get the sense that the lead duo's time on this Earth is very much finite, though that's a matter that their children don't seem to quite grasp due to their individually busy schedules. Shukichi and Tomi are all too aware of the limited nature of life and they're outside looking in at their own children whittling away the days on a hectic, but implied to be unfulfilling existences. Yasujiro Ozu wrings a lot of potent pathos out of this dichotomy, the differing views on life between the younger and older members of this family, maximizing a potentially rich source for effective drama for all it's worth.
He also brings to the table a unique visual and editing style that basically plops the camera down and has it record footage of the characters going about on mundane business in the span of one or two shots. For instance, we see Shukichi climb down some stairs in one shot before cutting to an extended shot that depicts him getting ready to go out on the town that stays at one angle for its entire duration. Sometimes this works (such as the emotionally gut-wrenching final shot), other times, it does feel overly ponderous, but I will say that I take some of the blame since I'm unfamiliar with Ozu's work and visual style. Perhaps upon looking at more of his films and growing more accustomed to this type of directing, the elongated naturalistic takes might not stand out as much to me.
In addition, Ozu has a remarkable gift for directing actors, with particularly high praise needing to be heaped upon the two leads, Chischu Ryu and Chieko Higashiyama. These two have a most engaging dynamic together, you can totally get the vibe from the way they bounce off each other that they've known each other for decades and it makes the more tragic elements of the third act involving Tomi carry even more dramatic weight. That entire act is an emotionally powerful force to behold, one whose final moments just invite the viewer to take in even more heart-rending turmoil and it's a strong way to end a distinctive and thoughtful production like Tokyo Story.
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