Suna no onna 1964
Woman of the Dunes 1964
This was one of the films I had on my list to see, particularly because it was by a Japanese director who I’d not heard of, given the fact I’d done so many Kurosawa, Mizoguchi and Ozu films – even a Takeshi Kitano – recently. I had resigned myself to not being able to get a copy to view. What a bit of luck to get this as my fourth film in the 1964 History of World Cinema course.
It was far darker than I had anticipated, essentially about a man and woman held hostage by villagers and used as slave labour, but as with all the films I’ve been watching I knew nothing about it before seeing it, not even the year it was made.
It digs deeply into the worst aspects of what people can do to other people for their own profit.
I’ve stayed awake – as in, deprived of sleep – thinking about this awful film, from 1am to 3am, writing an essay about the metaphor and meaning behind Teshigahara’s film.
If you’d like a copy, please email: 100greatestfilms@gmail.com
‘Emails from the Class’
As I stood and handed out flyers to everyone in the class last night most of the bones in my body were vibrating with a combination of nerves and fear. I’ve never been so bold as to make a big deal about something that wasn’t musical – my profession – which is something I do know a bit about.
But I got a couple of emails back which were very nice. Thanks to those who got in touch.
Julie’s kind and engaging email in fact inspired me to reflect on what my favourite films were growing up and the economic circumstances surrounding whether we had enough money to go to the movies any given week. I think I’ll write an article about the films I saw from my earliest memory to the point in life where my parents – or the world – stopped seeing me as a child. That point was probably when they started making me pay for my own tickets.
