Audience Member
It is hard to describe the deep pleasure with which I regard Ozu's "Floating Weeds;" it is enriching, touching, comical, and endlessly charming. It offers a portrait of humanity which stirs us with its sense of compassion and empathy, demonstrating an understanding of human nature seldom captured so naturally in the art of cinema. Rarely before have I experienced such a complete and exquisite mixture of sadness and good humor at the same time. Ozu's characters are down and out; they hang their heads in lament, drink their sake, bemoan their setbacks, then stoically push on. The film invites us to regard even the miseries of our own misfortunes with a smile on the face, while simultaneously allowing us our share of tears. "Floating Weeds" may be the most approachable of Ozu's works and should be recommended to the new initiate, in that its story elements evolve in such an overt fashion that this film avoids the sense of inertia that might put off those who are unused to his zen and leisurely style. I not only love "Floating Weeds" but am grateful to it, as I am to all of Ozu's works, for so beautifully and tenderly depicting the relevant human themes that are so central to all of our lives.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
Full Review
William L
Ozu's films tend to share a particular style - slow, superficially simple, carefully shot, and focusing on universally human themesl Floating Weeds is no exception. Though rather inactive for substantial stretches, reflecting back on the total product reveals a richly detailed whole. The film opens with long sequences of pleasantries, formalities, and reintroduction before dropping a ticking time bomb in your lap - an itinerant actor, Nakamura's Komajuro, is revealed almost innocuously as the father of a young man in the village to which he has recently brought his troupe. From there, the unraveling of the troupe's fortunes gradually puts pressure on the network of romantic entanglements among its members and the townsfolk, leading characters to rethink their identities and relationships (all because this one town doesn't particularly like kabuki theatre). The narrative also incorporates a series of relatively lighthearted moments that, if anything, make the heavier moments carry that much more of a punch.
Shot from Ozu's conventional low angles with particular intimacy, Floating Weeds is notable as one of the director's relatively few films in color. Though it has an exceptionally vaunted reputation and is certainly an excellent film, I'm not sure if it meets the high water mark for the director, who has become increasingly frequently cited as operating at the pinnacle of world cinema with pieces such as Tokyo Story and Late Spring. Still, a weighty, very human near-existential think piece wrapped in subdued social drama that only a director of Ozu's caliber could make so compelling while retaining subtlety. (4.5/5)
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
06/01/21
Full Review
andrey k
A profoundly humanistic picture, as you would expect from Japanese cinema. I can only wonder how the Japanese are able to make such life-affirming movies without Hollywood 'happy-ends': there they, in their emptiness, try to alleviate their ultimate pessimism with sweety happy ending; here they depict human lives, worries and fates as they are, without adorning them with falsehoods, and yet the underlining optimism shows itself everywhere, even if some pensive sadness is settled in your mind after watching a picture like this.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
william d
I'm new to Ozu's films, but his unique style grows on me with each viewing. Floating Weeds followed the usual pattern: for the first hour I noticed the beautiful cinematography while wishing the pace would pick up. By the end of the second hour I was so glad I invested the time.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This is fantastic! Floating Weeds just got really good like magic from the rain scene. I appreciated the ambience, cinematography, music, background sounds from that scene onwards. Honestly at first, I found the scenes to be too trivial and can't appreciate the movie elements even tho I knew that it was a nod to rural life and the ins and outs of the travelling troupe. I guess the awkwardness/weirdness of the acting was also off-putting for me at first. Maybe because the movie is older, I'm not sure. I pressed on as Ozu is known for his works as part of the creme de la creme in the film industry. This is a movie that grew on me during watch.
As I was watching, I couldn't help but think that it could've saved Komajuro and Sumiko from having the worst altercations if they were more upfront and vulnerable with each other but this is what Ozu intended and imagined.
I appreciate good execution and composition but I realized that we are shaped by our experiences and perception of the world so we would react differently and appreciate different things and that includes the movies that we watch. Hence, my ambivalence with ratings/reviews sometimes.
Having voiced my gripes, there were notable scenes where you can hear a whistling or a faint percussive instrument in the background signifying the intensity or mood of the scene, or just to provide an effect like when Komajuro was subjugating Sumiko with brute force, or during the other contemplative scenes.
I also liked the scene where there was this kid eating watermelon with no other care in the world while the adults were contemplating their future and were beset with problems, swindling and pains.
This same child held an apple, dropped it and bawled in a later scene when he saw his grandpa retreat to a dark area. His grandpa cried but didn't wail as he was afflicted with age and jaded by countless worries. The child however wept for the simple fact that his grandpa is sad. At least, this is how I interpreted this memorable scene. 😊
I am more interested now in seeing the other Ozu films in our hard drive because this, being my first, left a good impression. If you are a cinephile or the type who relish movie elements such as camera work, filter, lighting, editing, sound and music; and the observant type, in-the-moment, this is a movie that you will probably appreciate and even love from start to fin. 🙂
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/14/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Western average audiences could never understand the greatness about this film. Visually stunning and told in a very unique Japanese way with good performances from the actors (we can't expect them to overact the way Western actors do, their culture is totally different). And such is its charm, despite being a classic tale, it is told with authenticity. It might turn long and dull, but most of the time Ozu's charming direction is delightful.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
02/25/23
Full Review
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