III. Transitional Space

Transitions in Tokyo Story prepare the viewer for the next conversation to be experienced, while "the plot is completely deemphasized" (Dresser 5). Any action that occured between scenes, such as riding a train, is instead represented through still scenes of the location.

When characters move from room to room indoors, the camera remains for a few seconds after everyone has left. The quietness of a room after the conversation has moved elsewhere in the house emphasizes "the paradox of humanity's presence by its absence" (Dresser 10), slowing the pace of the film. Too much dialogue spoken throughout scenes may confuse and exhaust a viewer, but the still shot of an emptied room acts as a buffer between conversations. These room transitions also increase the viewer's anticipation for the next scene, maintaining interest and engagement for the dialogues that will follow.

Throughout the film, "certain plot points are dropped" (Dresser 6), especially when characters are travel from location to location. Rather than detracting from the substance of the film, these minor ellipsis act to preserve the focus on dialogue. The viewer is informed on what happened between scenes by characters talking to one another, clarifying and progressing of the narrative through words.

Transitions between locations are mostly composed of "empty shots" (Dresser 22), where the landscape of the new setting is shown. When characters travel to the city, large smokestacks are shown, silently releasing smoke. This may represent the looming aura of the city, a stark contrast to the seaside town the elderly husband and wife, the main characters of the story, are used to. When traveling to a seaside resort, the transition shot is the ocean, with an island barely visible on the horizon, shown through the view of an open screen door. A possible interpretation of this shot may be the distance the elderly couple feel from the family that they originally intended to spend time with. These transitions are not only reorienting the viewer to the next setting, but also reflect the emotions that the characters feel. As a result, the audience is prepared to look out for the "feeling [the transition] evokes" (Joo 209) in the next dialogue.