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There Was a Father 1942

There Was a Father

A widowed teacher tries to secure his son’s future, yet the decisions he makes keep them apart. Ozu turns the bond between parent and child into a conflict over duty.

Catalogue reference: 87 min (Criterion Collection spine 526 catalogue presentation).

Listed catalogue duration, not a measured runtime. Exact cut and matching disc or stream have not been established.

1942 · Directed by Yasujiro Ozu

What to expect

Love can be expressed through sacrifice while sacrifice also creates distance. The film’s wartime context makes that tension worth examining rather than automatically celebrating.

How to ease in

Track when father and son can be together, and what obligation separates them next. Keep affection and authority distinct.

For viewers interested in how private relationships carry public values.

Less suitable for an uncomplicated tribute to parental wisdom.

Heads-up

A sober account of separation and parental duty. Its ideals of self-denial reflect the film’s wartime production context, not a neutral rule for family life.

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