A youthful and relatively innocent film by Japanese iconoclast Seijun Suzuki, Ukigusa no yado Japan (US: Inn of the Floating Weeds) showcases the director’s confidence and inventiveness in a fairly commonplace tale of rival gangs fighting for control over port cargo in Yokohama. Having fled to Hong Kong for several years after being framed for a murder, Shunji (Hideaki Nitani) returns from hiding to find that his former lover Kozue had disappeared just after he did; he commences a search for Kozue assisted by her sister Mio (Hisano Yamaoka), who may also be tied to the rival Maruhishi gang. When Shunji finally comes to learn the truth about Kozue, his rage will fuel a final showdown with the vicious Tone (Jun Miyazaki) and the other Maruhishi thugs, culminating in a sort of truck warfare. Ikuko Kimuro plays the sweet Yuri with whom Shunji finds himself falling in love, and Hachiro Kasuga plays Yuri’s enigmatic brother Haruo with whom she sings at the nearby Club Harbor Light where crowds carouse and dance the cancan. Nakao’s camera pans and circles and zips past characters in the midst of intense conversations. Eguchi’s highly energetic score uses elaborate strings to set the moods. Daydreams and flashbacks appear on screen without warning. And exposing the truth won’t lead anywhere near a happy ending.