(a.k.a. "Dodes'ka-den" and "Clickety-Clack")
Japan (1970): Drama/Fantasy
His first project since Red Beard (1964), and his first ever in color, director Akira Kurosawa focuses this time upon Tokyo slum life. We watch as a variety of unfortunates debase themselves to survive. Somehow, they emerge with more innate dignity than the so-called "better" people.
While it seems inconceivable that this picture would fail at the box office, fail it did upon its original release. The Japanese distributors hastily pared down the film's 244 minutes to 140 (unfortunately destroying the original negative in the process), but this version also came a cropper. It was the negative reaction to Dodesukaden which allegedly prompted Kurosawa to attempt suicide; happily, he survived to reclaim his industry stature with 1974's Dersu Uzala. (Toho, Yonki-no-Kai / Janus) (Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide)
1 nomination
· Foreign Language Film Award 1971: (Japan) (Kon Ichikawa, Keisuke Kinoshita, Masaki Kobayashi, Akira Kurosawa & Yoichi Matsue - Producers)