The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice

Taeko (Michiyo KOGURE), a woman with a genteel upbringing, married country-bred Mokichi (Shin SABURI) on the recommendation of her father. She has lived with her husband for several years without ever feeling any great love for him, and her boredom has grown in direct proportion with the affluence of her surroundings. She feels lonely despite her married status, and her heart is constantly burdened by the monotony of it all. Meanwhile, although Mokichi doesn’t show it, he secretly feels the same way as Taeko. Their subtle emotional discord reaches an explosive apex when the issue of marriage arises for Taeko’s niece Setsuko (Keiko Tsushima). Then, on the same day that Taeko leaves home to visit Kobe, Mokichi is suddenly saddled with a overseas business trip, and he ends up boarding his plane in the absence of his wife.

Following his previous work “Early Summer,” OZU drastically shifted his focus to depict the nature of love between a middle-aged married couple, and in addition to its mellow taste, it adopts a lighthearted approach with an abundantly comedic touch reminiscent of the director’s renowned “What Did the Lady Forget?”. As the title suggests, it discovers domestic bliss in the taste of green tea over rice, which happens to be savored by a mature husband and wife whose relationship is in jeopardy due to their different upbringings and personalities.

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