Here Hou has made a film emulating and paying homage to the great Ozu for the centenary of Ozu's birth. It succeeds (mostly) because Hou doesn't attempt a remake or to imitate Ozu too slavishly. There is a conscious and obvious connection in the subject matter and the cinematic style, but it is clearly a modern film by a different man. It is, in the best sense, how M. Night Shyamalan reminds one of Hitchcock. You see the influence and feel the respect for the master, but the disciple knows he must also be his own man.