Onomichi's aging couple are loving and slower-paced, and their children in Tokyo move quickly and are more preoccupied with work and home. Tokyo Story describes the impact of urban life on people's priorities. Even Noriko, the daughter-in-law who was under no obligation to spend time with her in-laws, admits to the colder state of mind that the couple's children so explicitly betray. The city seems to drive away warmth from people and the couple observes such changes in their children. So what is really tragic is the death of the mother, because she is undoubtedly the warmest character in the film. In fact, it's not just about warmth or coldness of character or simply family, this film contemplates the humanity of people when they are framed in particular landscapes, and the city seems to drain the humanity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay This question is further explored by Ozu's analysis of the film, particularly his comparison of the sacred and the vulgar throughout the film. Even the couple has a line drawn between them at some point, as Ozu points out, during the night the couple separates. The husband participates in the vulgar by reverting to his old habit of drinking until he almost passes out, a habit that will rightly worry his daughter later at the funeral dinner. The mother, however, achieves the sacred by spending time with Noriko, where there is no longer any obligation between them, thus making them, as Ozu refers to them, “strangers” (105). However, Ozu's elevation of mundane objects as "looking" at the mother, as part of the well-known tendency of older people to lose memory, seems to be an overanalysis. Older people are generally forgetful, so calling normal atrophy something particularly special seems a bit excessive..