Cafe Lumiere

Though the title is a nod to French cinema pioneers Louis and Auguste Lumiere, Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien's film is a lovely gift to his spiritual sensei, Yasujiro Ozu (1903-63), on the occasion of his 100th birthday. Freelance writer Yoko Inoue (Yo Hitoto) no sooner returns to Tokyo from one of her frequent trips to Taiwan than she's off again to visit her parents in the suburbs. While sitting with her stepmother (Kimiko Yo), Yoko calmly drops a bombshell: She's pregnant by her Taiwanese boyfriend and has no intention of moving to Taiwan and marrying him or of putting the baby up for adoption. Her stepmother is concerned — Yoko barely has enough money to sup...