Review of Woman in the Dunes (1964) by Brad W — 29 Feb 2008
"Woman in the Dunes," Hiroshi Teshigahara's second collaboration with screenwriter Kôbô Abe, is a Kafkaesque masterpiece and a classic of world cinema. While searching for rare insects in an inexplicable desert, a man (Eiji Okada) is tricked into an a woman's home within a deep sandpit, of which he cannot escape.
Okada undergoes a complex transformation as he is forced to come to terms with his bizarre situation in this new micro-society. He slowly realizes that his imposed female counterpart (Kyôko Kishida) is not the enemy, but a necessity and a cure for nature's loneliness.
Constantly blending textures by way of slow fades, no single frame is without a near-tangible sandy grit. This use of editing and mise en scène by Teshigahara is crucially paired with Toru Takemitsu's brilliant dissonant score.
Always working its way under your skin, all of these elements reach a masterful crescendo when the imprisoning others force the protagonist to choose between freedom and Kishida, all underscored by climactic drumming and close-ups of demonic masked figures.
"Woman in the Dunes" is a mental conundrum and sensory assault, and not one soon forgotten.
This review of Woman in the Dunes (1964) was written by Brad W on 29 Feb 2008.
Woman in the Dunes has generally received very positive reviews.
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