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Floating Weeds, 1959
A kabuki theater troupe arrives in a seaside town. The troupe is led by its lead actor, Komajuro (Ganjiro Nakamura), who discovers that years earlier when the troupe passed through the town, he fathered a son, Kiyoshi (Hiroshi Kawaguchi), with a local woman, Oyoshi (Haruko Sugimura). This revelation drives a wedge between Komajuro and his current partner, Sumiko (Machiko Kyo), who out of anger gets a young actress (Ayako Wakao) to seduce Kiyoshi.
Having seen and loved the 30s version of this film (also directed by Ozu), I was incredibly interested to see what I'd think of this version. Being Ozu, there was no doubt I'd enjoy it.
It's always kind of surreal watching a loyal adaptation of a film, knowing the major beats ahead of time, but being surprised by the little changes. I'm not sure which version I like more, as they both have things to love.
The addition of color here is great, and Ozu has several sequences--both with actors and without--that really revel in it. A shot that pops up a lot when you search the movie's title is one of two actresses in colorful outfits putting on their makeup, but I was also taken by an actorless shot of the window of a barber shop.
From what I can remember, this film adds some different comical beats. The best is probably when one of the troupe members harasses the daughter of the local barber. The girl calls for her mother, and when the barber arrives she directs the actor into the shave that he has supposedly come for. He sits there as she pointedly sharpens the razor on a strap.
The highlight of the 30s version for me was hands-down the sequence in the rain where Komajuro and Sumiko have a scathing fight as they stand on opposite sides of a street as rain pours down between them. I think that the 30s version slightly takes the edge here for me, as I love the look of the rain in black and white, but the sequence in this version was still goosebump worthy. There was actually another sequence in this version where characters had a conversation as the rain fell outside their window and I thought it was an incredibly beautiful shot.
The only downside to this story is Komajuro's treatment of both Sumiko and Kayo, the younger actress. He is verbally and physically abusive, repeatedly calling both women whores and sluts and slapping them and grabbing Kayo and twisting her arm roughly behind her back. It feels a bit more extreme than the tone of the rest of the film and makes his later interactions with both women frustrating as there seems to be an implication that their actions were of equal severity which they clearly weren't.
Another excellent Ozu.
I loved the inside look at the movie business, very cool. 