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Café Lumière

Play trailer Poster for Café Lumière 2003,  1h 42m,  Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist 90% 21 Reviews Tomatometer 77% 2,500+ Ratings Popcornmeter
90% Tomatometer 21 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
A pregnant woman and her friend search for a café that is frequented by a composer whose life she is researching.
Café Lumière

What to Know

Critics Consensus

A poetic tribute to filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu, Café Lumiere is a serenely fascinating journey through Japan's changing cultural landscape.

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Critics Reviews

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Amy Taubin Film Comment Magazine Nov 19, 2013
Some 40 years after Ozu's death, the traditions that govern middle-class Japanese family life - the crux of his films - are even more frayed. Go to Full Review
Michael Wilmington Chicago Tribune Jan 19, 2006
3.5/4
Both Hou and Ozu excel in evoking the poetry of everyday life, and, as a tribute from one great filmmaker to another, Cafe Lumiere should richly satisfy devotees of both artists. Go to Full Review
Ted Fry Seattle Times Dec 2, 2005
3/4
The film often takes on the hypnotic rhythm of a dream. Go to Full Review
David Walsh World Socialist Web Site Feb 15, 2021
The film is calm and quiet, but without the intensity (and element of protest) at its core that Hou's films once possessed. Go to Full Review
Michael E. Grost Classic Film and Television Dec 4, 2016
Remarkable visual trip through Japan. Go to Full Review
Jeffrey Overstreet JeffreyOverstreet.com (Ghost.io) Dec 30, 2007
A+
Like Ozu's Tokyo Story, the film is mourning the passage of an era and a tradition, and more than a little dismayed at the direction things are heading. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Anakin S Dec 2, 2008 Very subtle. Not a lot of story at all. Moves along very slowly, but I liked the day to day life in Tokyo.
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Café Lumière

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Hsiao-hsien Hou

Director

Yo Hitoto

Yôko

Tadanobu Asano

Hajime Takeuchi

Masato Hagiwara

Seiji

Kimiko Yo

Yôko no keiba

Hsiao-hsien Hou

Writer

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Café Lumière

Café Lumière (2003) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A pregnant woman and her friend search for a café that is frequented by a composer whose life she is researching.
Director
Hsiao-hsien Hou
Screenwriter
Hsiao-hsien Hou, T'ien-wen Chu
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (DVD)
Dec 27, 2005
Runtime
1h 42m
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