Dolls takes puppeteering as its overriding motif, which relates thematically to the action provided by the live characters. Chief among those tales is the story of Matsumoto and Sawako, a young couple whose relationship is about to be broken apart by the former's parents, who have insisted their son take part in an arranged marriage to his boss' daughter.
Cinematography
Katsumi Yanagishima's color-coded seasons will ruin other films for you.
Costume
The red cord that binds them—simple, lethal, unforgettable.
Direction
Kitano's silence speaks louder than any dialogue could.
Director
Takeshi Kitano
Miho Kanno
Sawako
Hidetoshi Nishijima
Matsumoto
Tatsuya Mihashi
Hiro
Chieko Matsubara
Ryoko
Kyoko Fukada
Haruna Yamaguchi
Kayoko Kishimoto
Haruna's Aunt
Nao Omori
Matsumoto's Colleague
Kanji Tsuda
Young Hiro
Yuko Daike
Young Ryoko
Ren Osugi
Haruna's Manager
Koji Kiryu
Yakuza
Kyoko Yoshizawa
Haruna's Mother
Midori Kanazawa
Matsumoto's Mother
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Kitano deliberately chose bunraku puppetry—where puppeteers are visible—to mirror how we perform our own tragedies in plain sight.
The film bombed in Japan but became Kitano's biggest international hit; domestic audiences found it 'too beautiful,' which tells you everything.
JP
