Red


I was struck by the colour palette of this film. It's all muted grey tones with deliberate splashes of red. Is there a significance to the colour or was Ozu just playing?

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Yes the same can be observed in the constant appearance of the red kettle in Equinox Flower. To answer your question, now I don't think there's a specific significance to the color. However, it depends what one sees as of specific significance. Ozu always paid most attention (after the dialogue and characters) to compositional beauty -- hence such disciplined formalism. The color red can be taken as a visual motif. Something that conveys an emotion unable to be put in words.

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Yes the same can be observed in the constant appearance of the red kettle in Equinox Flower. To answer your question: no, I don't think there's a specific significance to the color red. However, it depends on what one sees as of specific significance. Ozu always paid most attention (after the dialogue and characters) to compositional beauty -- hence such disciplined formalism. Therefore, the color red can be taken as a visual motif. Something that conveys an emotion unable to be put in words.

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That seems reasonable. A little colour to lift the palette

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The use of red in other Ozu films has been a topic for discussion elsewhere, I've noticed. Me, I like it. I even noticed that when the three men near the beginning of this film got together for drinks, they had a bottle of scotch on the table. The brand? You guessed it: Johnny Walker... Red Label.

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