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Woman Of The Dunes [1964] [DVD]

 Suitable for 15 years and over   DVD
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
Price: £8.00 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Woman Of The Dunes [1964] [DVD] + Onibaba [Masters of Cinema] [DVD] [1964] + Kwaidan - Masters of Cinema series [DVD] [1964]
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Product details

  • Format: PAL
  • Language: Japanese
  • Subtitles: English
  • Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 4:3 - 1.33:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Classification: 15
  • Studio: Bfi
  • DVD Release Date: 31 July 2006
  • Run Time: 123 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B000FVX6R8
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 9,068 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)

Reviews

United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: Japanese ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Subtitles ), SPECIAL FEATURES: Black & White, Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: Hiroshi Teshigahara's powerful masterpiece, based on the novel by Kobo Abe, follows an amateur biologist who escapes the bustle of the city by studying beetles in remote sand dunes. After missing the last bus, he accepts a villager's offer to spend the night in a widow's shack at the bottom of a deep sand pit. In the morning he finds he is trapped. At first enraged, the man's hatred for the woman soon turns to searing, erotic lust. Featuring striking high-contrast photography from Hiroshi Segawa and a minimalist score by composer Toru Takemitsu, Woman Of The Dunes was the second collaboration between director Hiroshi Teshigahara and author Kobo Abe, a film preceded and succeeded by their other classics Pitfall and Face Of Another. Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Cannes in 1964. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Cannes Film Festival, Oscar Academy Awards, ...Woman of the Dunes ( Suna no onna )


Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
30 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Hiroshi Teshigahara may not rank as highly in the echelons of Japanese directors as Ozu or Kurosawa, nevertheless he has produced a classic in Woman of the Dunes.

A professor in search of rare butterflies (what else when the film is concerned with transformation) on the dune coast of Western Japan, misses his transport home and is offered shelter by the local people in the strange sand pit home of a widow. All is fine until he tries to leave, and finds that the villagers have other ideas, for the widow needs help in shifting the sand from her pit, an endless and thankless task, and he is held captive. At first he rails against his captivity, sometimes violently, until he finds a purpose in this case the need to keep sand out of the water butt, and he no longer thinks of escape.

Filmed in 1964 at a time when Japan was undergoing a period of growing discontent, the student riots were only a few years away. The film serves as an excellent metaphor for the problems a rapidly changing society has with maintaining the belief systems of the past, and the alienation found in progress. The professsor at first views the peasants as inferior and in the way of his work, he is the face of the self centred modern Japan. But through his captivity he comes to see the need for conformity and a unity of purpose.

If you are interested in cinema, not just Japanese cinema, then I strongly recommend this film, you will probably read something completely different into the film than I did, therein lies its beauty.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A Darkly Hypnotic Tale. 2 May 2010
By Bob Salter TOP 100 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:DVD
There have been a number of films about victims kidnapped and held against their will. Sadly it is something that has happened in the real world, as recent cases have highlighted. I recall watching William Wyler's "The Collector"(65), where Terence Stamp adds a very attractive Samantha Eggar to his butterfly collection. There was also "Misery"(91), where a very scary Kathy Bates holds James Caan much against his will. No one could blame him there! But the daddy of all these films is Hiroshi Teshigahara's "Woman of the Dunes". This darkly hypnotic tale weaves its magic for a running time of 119 minutes. Remarkably, it is riveting viewing throughout.

Eiji Okada plays an amateur entomologist from Tokyo visiting sand dunes by the sea in search of bugs. When he misses his bus he is offered a bed for the night in rather an unusual lodging. He is taken to a house in a deep sandpit which is only accessible by rope ladder. Next day he finds the rope ladder has been lifted up and it begins to dawn on him that he has been kidnapped. He discovers that the young woman of the house played by Kyoko Kishida has lost her husband and daughter in a sand slide, and he is there to work as a replacement for them. His job is the sisypheon task of removing endless quantities of sand that are always threatening to engulf the house. The sand is sold to bulders by the villagers, who are all in cahoots. The woman is young and comely and willing to wait on our victim. She is also not above being seduced. She is also no Kathy Bates! Now some blokes might think they have fallen on their feet, get on with a bit of digging and enjoy the perks. But oh no, not Eiji. He tries repeatedly and with increasing desperation to escape. But gradually he begins to acclimatise to his surroundings. As a Beirut hostage once said " You can get used to anything eventually". He is now the worlds leading expert on Lebanese radiators! Will Eiji just become another missing person?

The film has a third big star that is uncredited, and that is the all pervading sand that is given a fluid life all of its own. There are many shots of sliding sand and expanses of sand rippled like the sea. There is more sand on display than there was in "Lawrence of Arabia". The film was made for a reputed paltry 100,00 dollars, which does not surprise me! All they had to do was find a big sand pit and build a rickety house resembling a garden shed out of driftwood. Then just find a few actors and off you go! But the film is much more than a simple budget frightener. Tension is cleverly built by the use of extreme close ups of the actors, and myriad shots of the ever present sand. The minimalist film music by Toru Takemitsu also creates an atmosphere of menace. Even the intelligent close up shots of strange bugs in the sand begin to make the skin crawl. The film is also strangely erotic as the two inevitably become lovers. But it should be added that there is nothing too much to upset granny. There were a couple of scenes that I suspect were cleverly included to create deliberate sensation. If so this was a successful ploy, as it was one of the few Japanese films to prove popular in the west. Sadly Teshigahara did not really fulfill his great potential and made all too few films. This stands as his masterwork and a fitting elegy to his memory.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Essential viewing? I think so. 30 Sep 2009
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
If you are a fan of Japanese cinema, then this is surely compulsory viewing. Filmed in a very atmospheric black and white (colur would not have had the same drama),it draws you in from the start by the exceptional cinematography and unusual location and subject matter. It's one of those films that leaves you contemplating the fragility and resilience of the human condition and the somewhat ambiguous ending (to my dull mind at least!) only adds to the speculation your mind is forced to consider. It also has some of the most intensely erotic and sensual scenes I've ever seen on film, which are balanced by some moments of real tenderness. You'll also never view sand in quite the same way again!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars great film
This film is as strong as it was almost fifty years ago. There wasn't a moment that I got bored. Somehow it is a great metaphor of life itself. Just wonderful
Published 11 months ago by Itamar Kool
5.0 out of 5 stars The Strange and the Beautiful....
Woman of the Dunes must rank as being one of the strangest films ever, but not in a weird way. More a modernish (it's set in the 1920s) fairytale, one for adults. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Tim Kidner
3.0 out of 5 stars Good release
This is a good release of a Japanese classic. Picture quality excellent! However, this is a much shorter version (only 119 min. Read more
Published 14 months ago by cinephile
5.0 out of 5 stars Not fast food
I'd read the book quite a long time ago, but I didn't know there was a film based on it, let alone available. So it was a wonderful surprise when I found it by chance. Read more
Published on 13 May 2011 by Martha Marino
4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful film, so-so DVD
A 2 hour black and white Japanese movie from 1964 whose plot is pretty much, guy trapped in pit, can't get out - sounds pretty grim viewing, right? Wrong. Read more
Published on 3 Dec 2010 by Now Zoltan
5.0 out of 5 stars After many, many years
First - My thanks to the young friend who suggested I search Amazon for a copy of this film - I would never have thought of doing so! Read more
Published on 25 May 2010 by Poucant
5.0 out of 5 stars An endlessly fascinating film
The film explores the domestic dynamics of a man and woman trapped in an existentialist void. The woman is contented with her lot, working for food and water with a man at her... Read more
Published on 1 May 2010 by Lao Chuang
5.0 out of 5 stars Human bug caught in sand
One of my favorites back in 60's and I havn't seen it since. Seen today it's still a masterpeace. Black and white (most black) makes the atmosphere, and the soundtrack is strong. Read more
Published on 15 Dec 2009 by Steen Frimodt
3.0 out of 5 stars Wrong running time
Just to point out that the running time listed above is incorrect. The BFI edition is the full uncut version, at 141 minutes PAL speed.
Published on 3 Feb 2008 by E. Ashby
5.0 out of 5 stars Very good
It's a true gem of Japanese cinema based on the Cobo Abe's novel.The problem is that this DVD shouldn't be so expensive,because this is a much shorter version(only 119 min. Read more
Published on 8 Nov 2007 by Yoselovich Boris
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