This is an original Japanese B2 movie poster printed in 1961 for the first Japanese release of Yasujirō Ozu’s The End of Summer (小早川家の秋). This is the ultra-rare Chihō-ban (地方版) / regional-issue style—produced in smaller quantities for provincial circulation and far less commonly encountered today than the standard head-office designs. The sheet is a theatre-used survivor, with period handling characteristics consistent with original cinema display and storage.
Film background
Released in 1961, The End of Summer is Ozu’s penultimate feature and one of his most quietly resonant late-period colour works. By turns wry and melancholic, it revisits Ozu’s enduring themes—family obligation, post-war social change, and the subtle negotiations around marriage and independence—delivered with his trademark compositional discipline and humane restraint. The film features a distinguished ensemble including Ganjirō Nakamura, Setsuko Hara, Yōko Tsukasa, and Mariko Okada.
Poster design
This Chihō-ban B2 presents an alternate, more promotional provincial layout while retaining the classic Toho-era elegance. The design is built around a refined, full-colour montage of the principal cast, anchored by bold red brush-calligraphy for the title 「小早川家の秋」. At the left margin, the vertical red copy (“日本映画界の至宝 小津安二郎が始めて東宝で贈る芸術大作!”) is a hallmark of regional marketing emphasis, while the inset portrait boxes and credit typography reinforce its period theatrical intent. A superb and highly displayable example of early-1960s Japanese cinema graphics.
Condition
Very Good / Excellent (display-strong), unbacked.
-
Cinema-used, light, age-consistent wear.
-
Edge and corner wear consistent with theatre handling, including small nicks and minor rubbing to extremities.
-
Scattered light surface marks/toning spots visible in the paler background areas (most noticeable near the top portion of the design), consistent with age and prior display/storage.
-
The sheet remains strongly coloured and attractive overall, presenting very well once framed.
It is over 64 years old!
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
