Words to describe Hiroshi Teshigahara's Woman in the Dunes can range from "exotic" to "surreal" or "hypnotic" but they are mere understatements if one is going to describe the experience that is set to come. Though if there was one word that hits me when I think of Woman in the Dunes is not "masterpiece," because such a word isn't going to do justice to the experience that I had when I watch such a brilliant work. The moment when I first watched Woman in the Dunes was an experience that overwhelmed every thought process that was going through my head - but in such a way that I could not pin everything down on the spot what a film…

“Do you shovel to survive, or survive to shovel?” – The Man

The Japanese Woman in the Dunes is a parable and visual tone poem that defies conventional description since it resists social realism, although in its hermetic presentation it plays realistic. It is also what the DVD box quote promises: “Haunting. Erotic. Unforgettable.” Sovereign rulers of nondescript power are perched atop a hill. Beneath are desert canyons, with people lodged in the dunes like inhabitants of an ant colony. The woman (Kyoko Kishida) needs a companion, so the village rulers trick a man (Eiji Okada) into the pit with promise of a hospice, and then permanently remove the ladder. The man, desperate for freedom, attempts to climb and scale…

Woman in the Dunes is a scathing piece on a man's place in modern society, wrapped up in the facade of an intense cat-and-mouse thriller. Despite the fact of the majority of the story revolves a man's self-rescuing, both the title and the poster primarily single out the female character, which is a really admirably intentional move from director Hiroshi Teshigahara.

Earning a surprising best director nomination at the Oscars, Woman in the Dunes proves its directorial excellence at sight and sound as early as the first frame, amplifying an eerily transfixing experience of a male scientist collecting insects in the desert, yet ending up being the collected, by heavy use of close-ups and sensual sound effects. Teshigahara combined elements…

No Nonsense November #5

Words haven't been coming for me lately. But I cannot stop thinking of this movie. It felt to me like I had traveled back in time and caught a late night transmission of some forgotten dystopian sf film on TV. I felt like I imagined my father feeling as he must have seeing 2001 for the first time. When he took Polaroids of himself and friends wrote on them, "Observe the stoner in his natural habitat. Note the glazed look on his face and complete disconnection from reality." Alone with an accumulating set of empty soda cans, I felt like something was happening to me. Everything in this film just sung straight to me. Through me.…

Are you shoveling to survive, or surviving to shovel?

Woman in the Dunes is a harrowing, thought-provoking, symbolic, sensual, and slow-burning psychological nightmare about a man being captured with a woman in a huge sand pit by local villagers in an isolated desert region. This film really struck a chord within me. Maybe it's because I hate sand, or maybe it's just because all of it's elements are so wonderfully put together to create an absorbing experience by its meticulous direction, whether it be the unsettling score, the beautiful b&w cinematography, the claustrophobic setting, or its compelling and deceptively simple, but allegorical story open for a variety of interpretations. It feels almost like social satire with its reflection upon society…

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Astonishing, really, how Teshigahara makes something as banal as sand the sole catalyst of such anxiety and desperation; WOMAN IN THE DUNES is a meditative parable about the The Second Law of Thermodynamics i.e. Entropy w.r.t. Life, the inevitable nature of tiny, little inconveniences to slowly occupy space within our existence, exacerbating if ignored wherein they threaten to enshroud us completely. A grain of sand is harmless on its own, but left to accumulate can present an insurmountable obstacle; our only options are to either refrain completely and get buried alive, or dig—oftentimes against our wishes—just to establish some form of categorical stasis. Everything here is allegorical, comprehensively so: the "sand" e.g. could represent anything, something as small as…

***One of the best 150 films I have ever seen.***

After making some documentaries and short films, Hiroshi Teshigara managed to achieve popularity, respect and a good reputation when he directed his first three feature films, which were the most famous and admired ones. After his masterpiece Otoshiana (1962) allowed his name to be considered among the greatest Japanese filmmakers, his second film Suna no Onna allowed him to gain world recognition, since it is widely considered as his best movie and his most representative and iconic masterwork. Dealing with existentialist thematic elements and having a hypnotic direction and a thrillingly atmospheric pace, Suna no Onna had the talent of functioning as a deep reflection not only for Eastern audiences,…

Woman in the Dunes (1964) is a very allegorical film, but in a way that is wide open. The score assisted with the isolating and belittling atmosphere that comes with being in a desert. It was more than just accompaniment to the scenery. The music brought so much energy into this film. Teshigahara's play with sand, wether that be in shots of eroding sand or close-ups of grains of sand of the back of the two main characters, speaks to the level of innovation employed in this film. There wasn't a single moment where I was bored, even though most of the film took place in a small hut at the bottom of a pit of sand. The unnamed man…

You ever have a movie just click all your boxes?

Single location story? ✔️
Cerebral horror? ✔️
Sisyphus Parallel? ✔️
Erotica? ✔️
Story about the human condition? ✔️

There’s so much to unpack here, but regardless it’s one of the most captivating films I’ve seen. Teshigahara is masterful behind the camera, every scene and shot pops and looks like a dreamy painting. After seeing this I’m blown away that people don’t talk about him more, combined with the Japanese legend Kōbō Abe using his original stories and writing the screenplays, these stories are so rich and deep. Teshigahara deserved his nomination from the Oscars, and I’m blown away he even got a nom for such an Avant-garde film speaks volumes.…