this is a stylized art film by beat takeshi with the feel of a traditional bunraku theatre story.
it actually opens with a bunraku performance - courier for hell [monzaemon chikamatsu]
and many later scenes refer back to this original point, often in a surreal manner
leaving the viewer open to interpret which parts are meant to be real or not.
there is a slight resemblance in feel to beat's zatoichi, but dolls is a much quieter
slower paced journey. the moment the end credits roll, the same feeling comes as when
you have just woken up after having surreal dreams;
it takes a moment to register you are awake,
then it takes a moment to remember what you just saw,
then you spend the next two days trying to process it and work out if it made any sense.
main cast:
nishijima hidetoshi
kanno miho
takeshige tsutomu
fukada kyoko
mihashi tatsuya
matsubara chieko
the main story features two characters bound together by a red rope
(yes this was the reason i wanted to watch it in the first place as the mere suggestion of
any unmei no akai ito type story line and im hooked)
the regretful man (nishijima) leading the mentally drifting girl (kanno)
to all the places they used to go before she lost her mind.
the two other story arcs feature a man (takeshige) who blinds himself to be able to
meet his pop idol (fukada), and an ageing yakuza boss (mihashi) who returns to meet his
first love (matsubara) who has waitng for him in the park every week
since they parted many years ago.
its a very slow quiet film, with many long shots of people just walking.
it is not the kind of movie you can expect to entertain the masses.
i'd say most people wouldnt really get it.
there is a lot of symbolism and a constantly ambiguous setting and time frame.
this movie is just to be absorbed with they eyes and felt in the heart
not really for being understood with the mind.
and if that wasnt a pretentious statement i dont know what is, but i stand by what i say.
dolls is kind of heartbreaking in a way, it feels sad and lost, but it is also very sweet and
full of love. the cinematography, settings, clothing and score are all beautiful.
and it really does feel as if you are watching a buraku performance at times.
the two lonely wandering main characters (echoed by the bunraku dolls) show more
feeling in their emotionless catatonia than characters in any melodrama,
and their journey is what carries you through this movie
right up until the obscure but very simple symbolic ending, explaining that
death is the end of one road and the closure to one story, not a monster to ends all things.
beat takeshi has stated that where you stand on your idea of death will shape how you
interpret this movie. but reguardless of how deep you wish to look into any meanings
behind the story and imagery, it is beautiful and graceful - worthy of watching with
no preconceptions or expectations.
~
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