Floating Weeds (1959)

This time Ozu does not settle his film in Tokyo, but in a small town at the coast. And it is not a home-drama. At the centre are the experiences of a Kabuki-troup. Thus Ozu can play with the cliches of the Geisha and Samurai film. But not only Geishas and Samurais have become outdated, but also the representation of the latter by Kabuki-theater. The educated miss "social relevance" the others the pink panties of the dancing girls. The show of the theater group is a failure, and all the actors ask themselves for which reason they have come to such a place. But they get top know that the head of the troup visits an old lady whose son thinks he is the actor's nephew.... From this constellation originates a typical Ozu story of love, betrayal, disillusion with an ending you would not have expected seconds before. The whole film is characterized by beautiful and symbolic arrangements of Japanese interieurs, though mostly of the traditional type. I hope that other dubbed versions are not as awful as the German one.

Fmovies: FLOATING WEEDS -- OZU 1959. image1.jpego Revival viewed at the Encore Theater in Hollywood, in 1975 on a double bill with Kurosawa's Dlodeskaden. Original review published in Rafu Shimpo, Los Angeles Japanese daily newspaper.

Film number two of the evening, truly a stroke of programming genius, was Ozu's virtually unknown 1959 masterpiece "Floating Weeds" (Ukigusa). Also in color this is one of Ozu's most powerful films, yet, for some strange reason it has never been shown in this country outside of museums or obscure college series screenings. The film stars Ganjiro Nakamura, a remarkable actor of Kabuki background and one of the great old men to be seen on film. Ganjiro is the eternal "sukebei" -- the lovable, strong-willed "dirty old man" -- a role in which he has no peer. In this picture he has two mistresses, a young one, Machikyo Kyo (of Rashomon and Ugetsu fame) who is an actress in his traveling Kabuki troupe, and an older one played by Haruko Sugimura, who is surely one of the best actresses of all time, anywhere. In addition he has a daughter, Ayako Wakao, by mistress number two, and thoroughly disapproves of her boy friend (Hiroshi Kawaguchi). At the time Wakao was Daiei's reigning female box office star, with her fresh ravishing beauty and all around radiance. Here she is paired with the dominant Japanese actress of a decade earlier, Kyo, who was still very attractive and still going strong. The film deals with the conflicts arising out of these relationships and the resulting effect on the career of the old actor. The confrontation between mistresses Machiko and Haruko with Machiko screaming her defiance at the old man, who has just thrown her out into a driving rain storm, is one of the most powerful scenes in the entire, normally gentle, Ozu repertoire.

This film, a major Daei release of 1959, lensed by master cameraman Kazuo Miyaguchi and produced by legendary film mogul Masaichi Nagata, is truly a neglected gem not to be missed if it ever comes your way. NOTE: This film was the enhanced supercharged remake of Ozu's own prewar Black and white Ukigusa, which came out in 1934. The name Wakao means "Young Tail" !

From the opening scene with the lighthouse in the distance and a bottle on the beach in the foreground (which is worthy of being a famous modern minimalist landscape painting) the view is pulled back to a shot of the lighthouse from between two boats, then to a store front. These shots are the equivalent of a powerful opening paragraph to a novel, they draw you in in anticipation of what is to come. Throughout the film the artistry of the color cinematography does not disappoint. Each scene is composed as if it were a painting and the use of color is singularly striking. A black-and-white viewing of this film would lose about 80% of its appeal.

The story is that of a traveling Kabuki theater troupe arriving to perform in a small Japenese village. This is not the troupe's first visit to the village and the leader of the troupe, Komajuro Arashi, had fathered an illegitimate boy there some eighteen years in the past. When Komajuro visits the mother of his son, for the first time in twelve years, complications ensue.

Some remark that this is a simple story simply told. As far as its being a simple story, it is no simpler than, say, "Othello," which could be summarized as "Proud soldier meets tragic end due to jealousy." The treatment of the corrosive effects of jealousy, pride, deception, and male ego in "Floating Weeds" make for anything but a simple tale. As far as its being simply told, it is in fact most skillfully told - as the movie progresses the combination of sound and image have a subtle accumulating effect on mood, heightening awareness. It is frequently the case that the *appearance* of simplicity in a work of art, as in "Floating Weeds," is difficult to achieve.

The music is a cross between the score for a French comedy and a work of Arvo Pärt, but it adroitly reflects the shifting moods of the film which alternate between serious and comic, sometimes being simultaneously serious and comic. Ozu does not allow his movie to become overly ponderous; it is leavened with humor. For example, when the troupe is enjoying a day at the beach one of the members says with seriousness, "The sky's so blue, it's sad," to which another replies, "Don't be silly, I want to eat a big cutlet."

It is difficult not to be offended by Komajuro's physical abuse of his mistress, his son, and his son's lover. And the general acceptance of male dominance is hard to digest. I am not sure what we are supposed to feel about Komajuro at the end, but I found that his particular personality flaws distanced me from any deep caring about him or his fate. I had more concern about the future of his son and the women who were involved with him.

Floating Weeds fmovies. Ozu is a wonderful experience just to watch the musical formations. Each shot is composed in the most careful way so that the assembly has a geometric rhythm. It is soft and melodic, this visual overlay, painting in motion. No one does it better that I know.

There's a talk between two troubled lovers in the rain, then in opposing shelters, that is especially noteworthy, but it is all so cinematically lovely...

The way he's put this together is very Japanese. Each shot length is nearly precisely the length of the one before. Each employs a stationary camera only, but the positioning of the camera only sometimes is where a human eye would be. As I've mentioned, The composition in terms of elements, space and color is perfect in each shot and follows in a deliberate, engineered pattern from the previous shots.

The narrative isn't integrated in the way Kurosawa would do — and be considered un-Japanese for. But the story does much of that for us.

It is a story about pretense and staging, with most of the actors playing characters who are actors and have trouble in being an actor.

You'll have to work to be engaged in the story. But its rather easy to just sit back and admire the loveliness. Ozu is always worth it for this. I don't know many of his films, but this is the most formal of those I know.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

Floating Weeds by Yasujiro Ozu is an exquisitely restrained film about a failing acting troupe that travels to a small town and engenders a conflict of generations in a Japanese family. As the film opens a boat moves slowly into the harbor a Japanese coastal village. A Kabuki troupe arrives and begins to pass out leaflets announcing their opening performance. Sadly the opening crowds are small. Komajuro (Ganjiro Nakamura), the principal actor in the troupe, goes off by himself to visit Oyoshi (Haruko Sugimura), a former lover who runs a Saki bar. She has an adult son, Kiyoshi (Hiroshi Kawaguchi) who Komajuro had fathered many years ago. Komajuro has hidden his identity from the boy because of his shame at being a traveling actor and Kiyoshi only knows of him only as "uncle".

When Sumiko (Machiko Kyo), Komajuro's mistress and leading star, finds out about this relationship she goes into a jealous rage and hires a young actress, Kayo (Ayako Wakao) to seduce Kiyoshi in order to humiliate his father. Kiyoshi, however, falls in love with Kayo. Komajuro disapproves and shows his anger but cannot exert parental authority since he has not told his son the truth about his parentage. As the troupe continues to draw small crowds, Komajuro's inner pain becomes visible and he strikes out physically against Kayo, Sumiko, and Kiyoshi. It is only in the surprising conclusion that he seems to regain some sense of acceptance of his circumstances.

Floating Weeds is a very intimate experience. The camera does not move but remains focused on the characters as they engage in discussions about commonplace events. As in Bresson, the actors show little emotion and speak in a monotone with long silences between questions and answers. The overall effect, however, is not banality but a sense of the natural rhythm of life. Ozu is a loving observer of human nature not a moralist. There are no saints in this film and each character is vulnerable and deeply human. Komajuro has been stripped of his career, his relationship with his son, and his female companions who still beg him for forgiveness. He is alone but he has retained his humanity and we feel only compassion for him. The ending is, in the phrase of Donald Richie, "a kind of resigned sadness, a calm and knowing serenity which maintains despite the uncertainty of life and things of this world". Floating Weeds is a masterful film from a director who truly respects his audience.

This, one of Ozu's last films, has all the elements of a Shakespearean tragedy played out among people living simple, workaday lives: deceit, jealousy, betrayal, vengeance, love, hope. It's all there. The acting by an all-star cast (at the time) of Japanese actors, including the gorgeous Ayako Wakao, is uniformly excellent. The cinematography may be the best I've seen for any color film made in the 1950's. The overall pace was a bit too slow for my liking, but it works well with a static camera taking every shot below eye level. This gives the viewer a visual perspective similar to looking at the actors on a slightly elevated stage, just as the audience does when watching the plays put on by the itinerant group of actors that centers the film. Overall, a well-crafted work by a recognized master, but not for the 'explosions & car chase' crowd. Rating: 8/10