After an unsuccessful foray into international territory with the yakuza pic Brother, director Takeshi Kitano abandons his usual formula— contemplative, poetic crime tale marked by bursts of powerful violence—to dive into a wholly new genre. Viewers who found Kitano’s last attempt at this (with the sweet Kikujiro) to be a little too cute and sentimental may find themselves at home with Dolls, which turns to the tragic and painful sides of love in three short, symbolic stories.
The film’s dominating tale is one about a groom-to-be, who returns to an injured former love he had mistreated due to his ambitions. Two smaller stories are woven in, one about an old yakuza boss who returns to find his ever faithful love from the past, and a fan’s obsession and relationship with a recently disfigured pop-star.
The premises are all marked by tragedy as Kitano finds his inspiration in Japanese Bunraku puppetry, a slow-moving, meticulous and often tragic form of theatre that finds its material in classic stories. The film is a live-action love letter to the art form stylistically, as Kitano’s actors speak very little and convey meaning through the slightest expressions and movements, clad in vibrant costumes and wandering about mesmerizing and colorful landscapes that shift through all the season—with a moody Joe Hisaishi score to fill the silence.
Kitano’s writing also incorporates interesting metaphorical connections between the stories and puppetry—each tale of love involves one lover essentially under the will of the other. Sometimes, the connections can be too heavy-handed, or self-indulgent, but for the most part, Kitano’s depth works.
The film mostly struggles with its basic emotional connection with the viewer. The main relationship handles its characters well and gives them the time to be sympathetic, but the other two (about the yakuza and the pop-star) reveal that there’s a thin line between an adorably quirky romance, and a disconcertingly creepy one.
The hypnotizing environments prove to be more involving than the two side stories—especially for international viewers. Kitano, after a failed attempt to target non-Japanese viewers, oddly turns to glorify bits of classical Japanese culture (much like in Zatoichi), with exotic locations, masks, puppets, classic music and J-pop.
Kitano fans may find themselves at a loss if they are expecting more than one yakuza shoot out and one joke, as the director takes a wild and drastic risk with this film. It has its flaws, but the resounding beauty of it all more than makes up for it. For those who teared up at every shot of Kitano’s Nishi and his sick wife on vacation in Hana-bi, this one’s for you.
Reviewed by Tarun
