This close remake of Yashijuro Ozu's silent 'The Story of Floating Weeds' from 1934 which was made under the aegis of Shochiku studios is a far mellower work which reflects not only its director's maturity but also the cheerier tone preferred by Daiei. He also has the benefit here of utilising Daiei's senior lighting cameraman Kazuo Miyagawa whose colour cinematography is ravishing as well as two of Daiei's leading performers Ganjiro Nakayama and Machiko Kyo as master and mistress Komajuro and Sumiko. The sunnier treatment is heightened by the wistful, nostalgic score by Fakandu Saito which would not be out of place in a Jacques Tati film.

Taking its title from the Japanese name for itinerant actors, this has all the hallmarks of Ozu's oeuvre, in terms of serenity, humanism and a profound understanding of the human heart. As usual the camera is static and placed a little below the actors whilst the compositions are nothing less than painterly. For this viewer at any rate one would have wished a few scenes, notably the confrontation between Komajuro, Oyoshi, Kyoshi and Kayo, to have been a little more animated but that is simply not Ozu's way. The argument between Komajuro and Sumiko whilst sheltering from the rain is masterfully handled as is their final touching scene in the railway station. The splendid images that open and close the film linger long in the memory.

By all accounts Ozu never aimed for an international audience and indeed his films were not really appreciated in the West until the decade after his death. His work is very much one of variations on a theme and as avowed Ozu devoteee Roger Ebert has observed: "To look at any of his films is to glimpse the whole."

This is my second Ozu film, first was Tokyo Story which I like a lot more. I think the direction is still pretty good and actors were fine but I felt disconnected from it's point and characters. I didn't feel anything emotionally, I was just admiring the opening shot and whole cinematography. It was just fine.

Ozu made two versions of the story of floating weeds, one at the beginning of his career in 1934 and one at the end in 1959. That the same story is adapted to the screen multiple times ia no exception. That the same director revisits the same story happens far less frequent. I know two other examples. Cecil B. DeMille made two versions of "The ten commandments" (1923 and 1956) and Alfred Hitchcock filmed "The man who knew too much" twice (1934 and 1956)

"Floating weeds" is in Japan a nickname for travelling vaudeville performers. In the film a travelling man visits (regularly) his old love when his theater company is in her town. He plays the uncle of her son, while in reality he is his father.

As all Ozu films, "floating weeds" is about family relations, in this film particularly about the relation of the man with his nephew/son and with his former love. The former love is still dreaming of living together with the man. At last the man seems to give in, but one wonders how sincere this desire is, as his theater company is goint through hard times commercially. The suspicions of opportunism are confirmed when at the first collision with his son (the man has finally told him the truth) he runs away.

The 1959 is in color (one of the few Ozu films in color), but in my opinion that is not the most fundamental difference. The most fundamental difference is the character of the former lover. In the 1934 version she is broken by the dissappearance of the man now the fulfilment of her dream had seemed so close. In the 1959 version she reacts more laconic. After so many years she knows the father of her son better than he knows himself.