Dolls

About devotion. We may not be able to understand the actions of these people but Kitano handles it all in such a sympathetic way that it is nonetheless always touching and moving. The film flows naturally and uses doll-work from Bunraku puppet theatre to suggest that people are puppets to their emotions and that these devoted individuals do what they do not out of choice but necessity. Languorous and gorgeously photographed with the image of the walking couple setting the pace this is a treat.

Sad and haunting, and all those words usually used to describe slow-moving tragedy. Some good intertwining of the stories, and decent acting throughout.

hard to understand but leaves a trace and captures the eye. also depicts quite unsettling view on women.

Slow, beautiful pictures and weird. Still very much likeable.

Kitano's perception of love is just as weird as his usual themes.

Dolls estreava há 20 anos no Festde Veneza. Belíssimo, mas foi um dos filmes do Kitano com o quais menos me conectei, é algo que eu amaria aos vinte anos, mas que me é estéril agora, mas fica a beleza plástica. BlurayRip VXT.

A deeply sad film about love, death and loss which plays out through three interlinked stories (in modern times). The music, cinematography and performances (in particular Nishijima and Kanno as real-life Banraku ningy?, who traipse around various Japanese landscapes with an unsettling lack of anima) make for a potent combination. An unsettling viewing experience.

que coisa mais bonita esse filme

Kitano's departure from norm is an undeniably ambitious, visually ravishing take on love and loss inspired by the Japanese tradition of Bunraku theater. Skillfully intercutting between three different stories, Kitano presents intriguing scenarios of somewhat foolish characters who are ruled by their desires, invariably to tragic effect. Not all the stories are satisfyingly resolved, but Kitano's formal elegance and his cruel yet compassionate worldview keep it compelling even in its dead spots.

I think if this had been your first Kitano movie, you might have enjoyed his style, but relative to his other films I was disappointed. I think he does comedy and frivolity better. The stories here felt like they were not strongly connected, aside from the man-woman connection. I would have liked to have seen a film on the first story alone, which had an interesting premise, but just got overplayed, with no resolution. The film tried to force a sense of tragedy, which didn't ring true.

The shots are absolutely gorgeous and Kitano's formula of "how can I make this situation even more fucked up?" really works. Even better is that he does this while keeping the on-screen action relatively tame.

(2nd viewing

Sevgili Kitano, bize farkli farkli insanlarin ask hikayelerini guzelce anlatiyor. Tabi biz Kitano'nun yakuza filmlerine alistigimiz için Kitano'nun icindeki ask adamini bu filmle gorebildik. "lan elin oglu/kizi ne ask yasiyor benim sevgilim 'askim eve gelirken yogurt alsana' diye mesaj atiyor" diyebilirsiniz film sonunda.

Didn't really connect with me emotionally, but it isn't bad. Hisaishi's score again makes it all seem kinda mushy and sentimental when it shouldn't be.

I am rarely moved by a film enough to write a review. But I felt I wanted to give my opinion on this. Am I a total idiot or is everyone totally nuts in saying this is a masterpiece? This is shite. It is boring. I, for one, do not find the photography to be that breathtaking, there is much better out there. And even if it was so great, that is not reason enough to praise it as a masterpiece. Very disappointing, especially if you do not know what you are in for.

o nasil idiot bir senaryodur. adeta bir gerizekaliya anlatilir gibi yazilmis. vicik vicik yapay bir duygusallik, yapmacik yapmacik oyunculuklar.. buram buram Cagan Irmak yavsakligi tadi aldim; o bile tuylerimi bu kadar diken diken etmemisti. melodram pornosu resmen. bu yonetmenin baska bir filmini asla izlemeyecegim.

Dripping with emotion, overly pathetic.

Beautiful.

Has that detached, lyrical quality all over that attracts me to eastern cinema. An unusual offering from this director that I wish he'd return to.

the part with the pop-singer is superb !

Dolls is so beautiful so wunderful, so many small, nice and charismatic details that you can watch it many times and never get tired of what you see. Kitano made a very melodramatic and melancholic movie with no happy end for any of his characters...but I guess in the end every person found their own piece after chasing there ghosts from the past. ( especially "Hiro" )

Very Nice

It's a Kitano movie with all the quiet moments and none of the violence. Most of the action is silent and a lot of it focuses on two characters walking, slowly, for a long time, which is indulgent, but the journey rewards your patience with a heartbreaking moment of beauty. Delicate, tragic, and unforgettable.

Sad stories to break the heart. First, lovers keep walking with no destiny because they couldn't get married. Second, a pop star's fan makes sacrifice just to be with her. Third, the woman waiting for his love.

This film is not about love, it's about death. Death and the untimely arrival of final moment to all of us. Just like the moment Sawako shows an improvement they both die, death is an unwelcome, unexpected and untimely visitor.

I'd have preferred more fleshing out of all three stories and less trudging around, but the combination of gorgeous colors, striking nature images and elaborate costumes help to mitigate the somewhat unnecessary slowness of the film.