Early Summer

Early Summer
Theatrical release poster
Japanese name
Kanji麥秋
Hiraganaばくしゅう
Katakanaバク シュウ
Transcriptions
RomanizationBakushū
Directed byYasujirō Ozu
Screenplay by
Produced byTakeshi Yamamoto
Starring
CinematographyYūharu Atsuta
Edited byYoshiyasu Hamamura
Music bySenji Itō
Production
company
Distributed byShochiku
Release date
  • 3 October 1951 (1951-10-03) (Japan)
Running time
125 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

Early Summer (麥秋, Bakushū; lit. "Barley Harvest Time") is a 1951 Japanese drama film directed and co-written by Yasujirō Ozu, and starring Setsuko Hara, Shūji Sano, Chikage Awashima, Chishū Ryū, Kuniko Miyake and Haruko Sugimura.

Like most of Ozu's post-war films, Early Summer deals with issues ranging from communication problems between generations to the rising role of women in post-war Japan. The plot concerns Noriko (Hara), a woman who lives contentedly in an extended family household that includes her parents and her brother's family, but an uncle's visit prompts the family to find her a husband.