"An Autumn Afternoon" (秋刀魚の味), Original First-Release Japanese Movie Poster 1962, Yasujirō Ozu’s Final Film, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) N259
This is an original Japanese B2 theatrical poster printed in 1962 for the first release of Yasujirō Ozu’s An Autumn Afternoon (秋刀魚の味, Sanma no Aji). Released by Shochiku on 18 November 1962, the film became the final work of one of cinema’s most influential directors and the culmination of his lifelong exploration of family, marriage, ageing and generational change.
Original first-release Japanese paper for Ozu’s films is extremely difficult to find, particularly in this exceptional state of preservation. As the country-of-origin poster for his final film, this example occupies an especially important place within Japanese cinema collecting.
Film background
Written by Ozu with his longtime collaborator Kōgo Noda, An Autumn Afternoon follows Shūhei Hirayama, an ageing widower played by Ozu regular Chishū Ryū. Hirayama lives comfortably with his unmarried daughter Michiko and younger son, but gradually comes to believe that Michiko must marry before she sacrifices her own future to care for him.
His decision is strengthened by an encounter with a former schoolteacher whose unmarried daughter has remained at home to support him. Recognising the loneliness and regret that may await them both, Hirayama encourages Michiko to leave—even though her marriage will bring an end to the domestic life on which he has quietly depended.
Through this deceptively simple narrative, Ozu examines parental responsibility, emotional self-denial and the changing structure of the postwar Japanese family. Scenes involving Hirayama’s old school friends, his former naval subordinate and the younger married generation introduce understated comedy alongside the film’s profound awareness of passing time.
The Japanese title translates literally as “The Taste of Saury,” referring to a fish closely associated with autumn in Japan. The internationally adopted title An Autumn Afternoon preserves the seasonal melancholy of the original rather than translating it directly.
The film was photographed in colour by Yūharu Atsuta, with production design by Tatsuo Hamada and music by Kojun Saitō. Ozu’s meticulous interiors combine restrained neutral tones with precisely positioned flashes of red, green and yellow—an approach that made his late colour films among the most visually distinctive works of postwar Japanese cinema.
Ozu died on 12 December 1963, his 60th birthday. Although An Autumn Afternoon was not conceived as a final statement—he had begun preparing another project—it has inevitably come to be regarded as his cinematic farewell.
Poster design
The poster’s elegant photographic design reflects the domestic intimacy and emotional restraint of the film. The upper composition is dominated by Shima Iwashita as Michiko and Chishū Ryū as her father, Shūhei Hirayama, seated together in a traditional interior.
Michiko’s patterned kimono and red obi contrast beautifully with Hirayama’s dark Western suit. Between them sits a porcelain sake bottle, while Hirayama holds a cup—an understated reference to the drinking rituals that recur throughout the film and accompany many of its most revealing conversations.
Both figures look directly towards the viewer. Their composed expressions convey neither overt happiness nor sadness, perfectly matching Ozu’s refusal of conventional melodrama.
The lower-left inset introduces Keiji Sada and Mariko Okada as the younger married couple Kōichi and Akiko Hirayama. Their Western clothing and modern apartment life represent the new consumer society developing around the older generation.
The Japanese title 秋刀魚の味 is printed in large, organic olive-green lettering. Immediately above it, 総天然色 announces that the production is in full colour. The central tagline reads:
“A father’s loving affection as he warmly watches over the happiness of his daughter departing for marriage!”
The upper margin identifies the film as an official participating work in the 1962 Japanese Arts Festival, while the gold Shochiku crest appears prominently in the top-right corner. The credit “Master Director Yasujirō Ozu” reinforces the prestige with which the studio presented the film.
This poster is in excellent+ condition. Its preservation is exceptional for an original first-release poster from 1962: the colours remain rich and beautifully balanced, the photographic imagery is extremely clean, and the typography retains excellent clarity. There are only minimal signs of age and handling, with no conspicuous damage detracting from the design. Once framed, it will display superbly (please refer to the imagery of the exact poster for sale).
It is over 60 years old.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
