Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Noutions Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

GazerRise Fantastic!

ShangLuda Admirable film.

Tim Kidner Told through a mixture of old Japanese culture and contemporary film- making, the three separate love stories overlap and interweave cleverly but subtly, too.Without any sullying from saccharine sweetness or melancholy, all three tales strain the credibility of what we would normally think a person's love for another would go to. But, that's the beauty - this is a dream- felt movie, exaggerating hardship and our emotions to emphasise that extraordinary bond that love can be.It's all interconnected by symbolisms and the extraordinary cinematography of Katsumi Yanagijima has us shimmering and floating in rose gardens, amongst autumnal leaves and under cherry-tree blossom. It is here that we take breath and sigh, after the often difficult human journeys we've just seen the characters go through. We cannot help but feel that we have journeyed with them - and perhaps suffered too.To me, it's the first story of the jilted bride who's rejection sends her insane and the subsequent redemption and dedication from her boyfriend to the extent that they become homeless that it the most moving. Their story united the other two stories and adds symbolism at the end. The tale of the ageing Yakuza who finally feels that he needs more than his violent lifestyle to exist as a human being and the fanaticism for a young pop singer also paint vivid pictures on Japan's social and cultural agenda.It did remind me of south Korea's 'Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter...' in that often idyllic and contemplative gestures and activities are interspersed with morally questioning random acts that leave cavities in people's lives and the atonement needed to rectify them; or at least to try to, in a soul-satisfying way.

me_n_myself2199 Kitano never fails to amaze me, and this movie is an exact epitome of the queer nature of his films. This movie is a collection of three love stories intersecting in the same time-line. The nature of love stories quite different from one-another and each one has a different essence to it.First story is about a young couple, second story is about fan-idol love and the third one is about an unrequited love. All of these stories are somber and moving, and are not as mushy as typical love stories of Hollywood.Cinematography in the film is awesome. There many long shots, which again is kind of Kitano's signature. Performance of the actors is quite good. Background score is beautiful and perfectly coherent with the scenes. The use of a puppet show in the movie is quite surreal and symbolic.If you liked "Amorres Perros"; you will definitely like this movie.A must watch for Kitano fans and those who admire subtle romance.

Claudio Carvalho Matsumoto (Hidetoshi Nishijima) and Sawako (Miho Kanno) are in deep love for each other. When the president of the company where Matsumoto works "selects" him to marry his daughter, Matsumoto's parents force him to accept the engagement. On the wedding day, Matsumoto is informed that Sawako has attempted to commit suicide and is slow and catatonic in a clinic. Matsumoto feels guilty, and takes Sawako out of the clinic; his decision affects their lives.The old Yakuza boss Hiro (Tatsuya Mihashi) misses his girlfriend from thirty years ago that has promised to wait for him in a park while he would chase success. When Hiro visits the park, he sees her on the bench where they used to meet each other.The pop-star Haruna Yamagushi (Kyôko Fukada) has an obsessive fan called Nukui (Tsutomu Takeshige) that stalks her. After a car accident, Nukui makes a decision to be close to his beloved idol."Dolls" is a sad and depressive movie based on the Japanese Puppet Theater Bunraku that tells three tales of guilt and eternal love. Each tragic love story is disclosed in a very slow pace and supported by stunning cinematography and excellent direction and performances. Takeshi Kitano has also a magnificent work promoting the culture of his country overseas. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Dolls"

Kirill Galetski Actor-Director Takeshi Kitano has received a lion's share of attention from the international film press and public for his often hard-edged, violent dramas about policemen and Japanese mafia, inflected with a touch of artistic flair.Therefore, DOLLS comes almost as a total surprise and persuasively affirms Kitano's reputation as a cinematic artist. It illuminates another side of Kitano that is not evident in his other work – that of a poet moved by love. A lyrical tale of tragic sacrifices made in the name of eternal devotion, it follows the fate of three very different couples, linking their plights with that of a couple from a 17th-century bunraku puppet theater play, two sequences of the performance of which open and close the film, forming formidable book-ends which put the film's other passions into cultural context. The opening shots of the dolls coming to life at the hands of master puppeteers are nothing short of exhiliarating.The cinematography by Katsumi Yanagishima is extraordinarily fluid and opulent. The clothing was designed by progressive couturier Yohji Yamamoto, himself once a subject of a film (Wim Wenders' little-seen 1989 documentary NOTEBOOK ON CITIES AND CLOTHES) and the costume designer on Kitano's previous film BROTHER.The film slowly but surely draws the viewer into the characters' inner worlds: a young man running from an arranged marriage at the last minute, his true love – a fragile girl pushed to the brink of insanity by the thought of him leaving her, an aging gangster in the autumn of his life faced with the stalwartly loyal woman he left years ago to join the yakuza, an obsessively devoted fan of a bubble-gum pop star who commiserates with her in her disfigurement after an accident. There is an unreal, fairy-tale feel to the proceedings that creates a pervasive air of mystery. The film is powerful in a strangely low-key way and its narrative flexibility defies explanation while leaving itself open to many different interpretations. It is definitely a film that requires an active imagination to appreciate, and its minimalism and inscrutability are part of the unique fascination it conjures. Highly recommended.