Review of Woman in the Dunes (1964) by X. T — 09 Oct 2007
"Are you living to shovel, or shoveling to live?".
An entomologist from Tokyo travels to a remote desert to study insect in hope of getting his recognized for the discovery of a new species of insect. A one night stay in a young widow's house in a deep sandpit turns out to be a trap that forces him to adopt the woman's way of life: shoveling sand out of the sandpit everyday to prevent the house from being submerged. His new life thus begins . The endless cycle of mundane everyday activities of eating, sleeping, sex, and shoveling sand out of the inescapable pit, very much like the Greek tale of Sisyphus. It serves as a bizarre allegory on the meaning of life, as the man is forced to question his own identity and purpose in life. How is his new repetitive way of life any different from his old repetitive city life? The man is a highly rational, logical kind of person who is contrasted by the irrational and earthly wisdom of the woman. Teshigahara's camera captures the shifting sands and the landscapes in sharp deep focus and superimposes images of extreme close ups with these landscapes. Tôru Takemitsu's jarring and abstract soundtrack complements the vivid images perfectly.
This review of Woman in the Dunes (1964) was written by X. T on 09 Oct 2007.
Woman in the Dunes has generally received very positive reviews.
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