Eri Yamamoto Trio / Special Project :

Music for the film " I Was Born, But..." directed by Yasujiro Ozu.

Eri Yamamoto - Piano

David Ambrosio - Bass

Ikuo Takeuchi − Drums

The Trio will perform and improvise on Eri's compositions as

a soundtrack to the black and white silent movie,

"I Was Born, But...".

The movie was filmed in Japan in 1932 by Japanese director

Yasujiro Ozu, one of the most important movie makers

in cinema history.

The film portrays the timeless human situation that we don't

choose which family we're born into, and the emotional, social,

and economic problems that result.  While Ozu treats the serious

and sometimes heartbreaking aspects of this issue, he does so

with lightness and humor.

Even though this film was made more than 75 years ago, we can

gain ideas and hope for dealing with the particularly hard times

our modern world is facing.

This is why Eri chose this particular film for her musical elaboration.

*The film is edited to 50 min. long for this project. 

　　　　　   Ryouichi and Keiji with their father

Plot Synopsis:

The father of two energetic young boys, Ryouichi and Keiji, is an office worker.

He has recently received a promotion, and moves his family from the center of Tokyo

to the suburbs. By moving close to where his boss lives, he is hoping to connect with

him and gain further promotion at his company.

The father is very strict with the boys. Right after the move, Ryouichi and Keiji fight

with the local group of bullies. To escape further conflict with them, the brothers cut

school for a few days, but still do their calligraphy homework in the field. But soon

the father finds out about their truancy from their teacher, and he scolds them.

He makes sure that the boys go to school the next day.

Soon the boys start getting along with the other kids, one of whom is their father's

boss. One day, all the kids boast about their fathers, with each saying,

" My father is the highest-ranking!". Of course, the brothers believe that

their father is the most important person in the world.

However, one night they are invited to view home movies at

their father's boss's house. In one of the movies, their father is seen making funny

faces and gestures to flatter and amuse his boss. The boys grow very upset about

this, as their image of their strict and high-ranking father is shattered by

his subservient behavior on film.

At home that night, the boys express their disappointment and anger towards their

father. The father scolds them, and the boys start crying. After that, the father

regrets that he has disappointed them.

The next day, the boys go on a hunger strike out of their anger.

The gentle mother makes delicious rice balls for them. Eventually,

they can't resist the food, and eat the rice balls together with their father.

In the last scene, we see that everyday life goes on. The father and the boys leave

their house for school, and on the way they see the father's boss and his son.

At first the father hesitates to say hello to his boss, but their boys better understand

the adults' world, and say, "Father, you should say hello to him."

The boys say hello to the boss's son and they go to school together. *