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  3. A Story of Floating Weeds (1934) [The Criterion Collection]

A Story of Floating Weeds (1934) [The Criterion Collection]

Posted By: MirrorsMaker
Date: 30 Apr 2023 00:46:48
SD / DVDRip IMDb
A Story of Floating Weeds (1934) [The Criterion Collection]

A Story of Floating Weeds (1934)
DVDRip | MKV | 714x480 | x264 @ 2584 Kbps | 86 min | 1,89 Gb
Silent or Score AC3 5.1 @ 448 + English Commentary track
Japanese (日本語) intertitles with English subtitles
Genre: Drama

Director: Yasujirô Ozu
Writers: Tadao Ikeda, Yasujirô Ozu (story) (as James Maki)
Stars: Takeshi Sakamoto, Chôko Iida, Kôji Mitsui

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.

IMDB

Remakably similar in structure yet different in tonal effect to Ozu's more famous 1959 remake, this story of a travelling troupe's last days in a seaside village was one of Ozu's first forays into a quiet, rural background, though it still feels brisk compared to the more staid and sumptuous remake. The depictions of stage life are more slapstick-oriented than in the remake (most notably in Tokkan Kozo's hilarious turn in a full-sized dog costume), but are counterbalanced by sensitive portrayals of all the characters, especially the great, dignified lead performance by Takeshi Sakamoto. The romantic interludes are as powerful as in the remake, though without employing the overt sensuality of on-screen kissing; instead there appears to be the use of a filter or gauze to give the scenes between the young couple an otherworldly effect, which gives more emphasis of the idea of the actress employed to seduce the troupe leader's son enacting a "performance", an idea that I would have like to have seen developed even further. Even so, this is a marvellous work with a set of wonders distinguishable from that of the remake.
(click to enlarge)
A Story of Floating Weeds (1934) [The Criterion Collection]

Notes:
– Score by Donald Sosin
– Commentary by Donald Richie

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