I Lived, But... / The Life and Works of Yasujiro Ozu

1983, Kazuo Inoue, 123mins

The title of Mr. Inoue's documentary, ''I Lived, but . . .,'' is a play on the titles of the series of successful silent-film comedies made by Ozu in the late 1920s and early 1930s (''I Graduated, but . . .,'' ''I Flunked, but . . .'' and ''I Was Born, but . . .''). In the elegant colors of Ozu's last films, Mr. Inoue interviews dozens of Ozu's friends and associates - including Chishu Ryu, as well as two of his brothers and a sister. ''I Lived, but . . .'' is mostly concerned with Ozu’s friendships with other film people and his work methods. ''I Lived, but . . .'' functions both as an introduction to, and a meditation on, the Ozu career.