My extremely large Hong Kong order came in today. After sorting them, adding them to my DVD Profiler database and spot checking a few, I settled in to watch one for the evening. I decided to pick something different from the lot and something, perhaps, that I could watch with my dad. I decided to pick one of the two silent movies I bought as he can keep up with those a little better.

Days of Youth: Here we have a story that just happens to take place in Tokyo but has been told many times, in many places and in many languages. We meet two college students: Watanabe, the carefree goof and Yamamoto, who is a more straight faced fellow who reminds me a lot of Harold Lloyd. They are friends who live together and at the same time meet and fall in love with the same girl. They both put off their courtship until their studies are over but end up meeting and fighting over her while on a ski trip.

There are a few interesting aspects of this film which really make it special. First, it is the oldest surviving film made by famed director Yasujiro Ozu. Secondly it's a silent movie that has very distinct Hollywood tendencies about it. The film mostly plays out like some of Harold Lloyd's film and I think he could have done quite well with the same material.

One other observation of the film is that Yamamoto wears a jacket in which the words "Smack Front Only" are printed on the back in English. It's good to know Engrish goes back a long way.

Labels: Classics, Japanese, Silent Films