Woman in the Dunes

Many so-called "classics" of the cinema become little more than historical footnotes with the passing of time, but Hiroshi Teshigahara's masterful filming of Kobo Abe's novel is still as vibrant and shocking as it was when it premiered over a quarter of a century ago. With extraordinary cinematography (that still holds its own in our time of special effects galore), the 1964 Woman in the Dunes tells the bizarre story of Jumpei (Eiji Okada), a Tokyo entomologist who visits a remote seaside village (where the people live in deep sandpits) during a specimen-gathering trip. He accepts an offer from a recent widow (Kyoko Kishida) to lodge in her home and awakens to discover that the rope ladder that allows access to and from the pit has been taken up. Jumpei is a prisoner. Similar in theme to John Fowles' The Collector, Woman in the Dunes goes much further in its exploration of the relationship between the sexes, as well as an examination of rural life vs. city life and alienation in the modern age. It achieves all of this within the framework of a powerful psychological drama, which is both riveting and sensually engaging. The sliding sand, which continually threatens existence, is an incredibly palpable presence-the equivalent of a third protagonist. After watching this, many people are going to want to take a shower to wash off the imaginary grit. Restored from the original negative with new subtitles, this is highly recommended. Editor's Choice. (R. Pitman)[Blu-ray/DVD Review—Aug. 23, 2016—Criterion, 147 min., in Japanese w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: $29.95, Blu-ray: $39.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD and debut on Blu-ray, 1964's Woman in the Dunes features a great transfer and an uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray release. Extras include the 2007 documentary “Teshigahara and Abe” on director Hiroshi Teshigahara and novelist Kobe Abe (35 min.), a 2007 video essay by film scholar James Quandt (30 min.), four short films by Teshigahara: 1953's “Hokusai” (23 min.), 1956's “Ikebana” (33 min.), 1958's “Tokyo 1958” (24 min.), and 1965's “Ako” (29 min.), and a booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Audie Bock and a 1978 interview with Teshigahara. Bottom line: this landmark foreign film shines on Blu-ray.]