The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice
One of the ineffably lovely domestic sagas made by Yasujirō Ozu at the height of his mastery, The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice is a sublimely piercing portrait of a marriage coming quietly undone. Secrets and deceptions strain the already tenuous relationship between a childless, middle-aged couple. Her city-bred sophistication bumps up against his small-town simplicity, and a generational sea change—in the form of their headstrong, thoroughly modern niece—sweeps into their household. The director’s abiding concern with the intricacies of family dynamics receives one of its most spirited treatments. With wry, tender humor and buoyant expansiveness, Ozu moves the action from the home into the baseball stadiums, pachinko parlors, and ramen shops of postwar Tokyo. Description adapted from Janus Films.
Director: Yasujirō Ozu. Country: Japan. Released: 1952. Length: 116 min. Format: DCP. Language: Japanese with English subtitles. Image Courtesy of Janus Films.
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://nmaamatinees.eventive.org/schedule/68d41c9d79c71b92381f54f5. Categories: Films. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Captioning. Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, December 10, 2025, 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
The world is a perplexing, peaceful mystery to Amélie until a miraculous encounter with chocolate ignites her wild sense of curiosity. As she develops a deep attachment to her family’s housekeeper, Nishio-san, Amélie discovers the wonders of nature as well as the emotional truths hidden beneath the surface of her family’s idyllic life as foreigners in postwar Japan.
Adapted from the autobiographical novel by Amélie Nothomb and brought to life in the completely original animated style of directors Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han, Little Amélie or the Character of Rain tells a tender, poignant, and visually stunning story about the healing power of human connection. Description courtesy of GKids
Directors: Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han. Countries: France, Belgium. Released: 2025. Length: 77 min. Format: DCP. Language: French with English subtitles. Image courtesy of GKids.
Venue: Asian Art Museum, West Building. Building: West Building. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (recommended). Get Tickets/Register: https://nmaanimation.eventive.org/films. Categories: Films. After Five. Accessibility: Captioning. Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Friday, December 12, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM.