Japan
1959
119 minutes
Color
1.33:1
Japanese
In 1959, Yasujiro Ozu remade his 1934 silent classic A Story of Floating Weeds in color with the celebrated cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa (Rashomon, Ugetsu). Setting his later version in a seaside location, Ozu otherwise preserves the details of his elegantly simple plot wherein an aging actor returns to a small town with his troupe and reunites with his former lover and illegitimate son, a scenario that enrages his current mistress and results in heartbreak for all. Together, the films offer a unique glimpse into the evolution of one of cinema’s greatest directors. A Story of Floating Weeds reveals Ozu in the midst of developing his mode of expression; Floating Weeds reveals his distinct style at its pinnacle. In each, the director captures the joy and sadness in everyday life.
| Komajuro | Ganjiro Nakamura |
| Sumiko | Machiko Kyo |
| Kayo | Ayako Wakao |
| Kiyoshi | Hiroshi Kawaguchi |
| Oyoshi | Haruko Sugimura |
| Aiko | Hitomi Nozoe |
| Theater owner | Chishu Ryu |
| Kichinosuke | Koji (Hideo) Mitsui |
| Yatazo | Haruo Tanaka |
| Sugiyama | Yosuke Irie |
| Kimura | Hikaru Hoshi |
| Sentaro | Mantaro Ushio |
| Shige | Kumeko Urabe |
| Director | Yasujiro Ozu |
| Script by (based on the 1934 Ikeda script) | Yasujiro Ozu and Kogo Noda |
| Cinematography | Kazuo Miyagawa |
| Art direction by | Tomoo Shimogawara |
| Lighting by | Sachio Ito |
| Music by | Kojun Saito |
Disc One: A Story of Floating Weeds
Disc Two: Floating Weeds
“Floating weeds, drifting down the leisurely river of our lives,” has long been a favored metaphor in Japanese prose and poetry. This plant, the ukigusa (duckweed in English), floating aimlessly, carried by stronger currents, is seen as emblematic of our own journey. And sometimes this identity...
Subtle, lyrical, and delicately bittersweet, Floating Weeds offers an excellent introduction to the cinema of Yasujiro Ozu—one of the greatest of all Japanese filmmakers, and until recently in the West, one of the least known.” The Japanese . . . think of Ozu as the most Japanese...
Displaying 0 discussion topics.
