Message from jluesse

[Anonymous]

Mrs. Courtney Lockwood-This movie is a masterpiece, and I am glad you wrote about it, for it compelled me to check it out. Both visually stunning and intellectually challenging, it is an allegory for existentialism that could be used in conjunction with a unit on, you guessed it, existentialism. The film is based on Kobo Abe's novel (which I have not read but could be used in the unit). The use of extreme close ups create and hint at a world that is sensual and unsettling. There are gorgeous scenes of nature reminiscent of ansel adams images or something-but given the circumstances of the film these settings are married to an element of cruelty. Both abstract and bold images are complimented by a haunting score that render the viewer with a tangible sense of isolation. Basically, a man absurdly ends up stuck up in a hole occupied by a woman. By the end of the film both characters (the man doesn't start that way) are nameless, without any identity. They are both doomed to shovel sand indefinitely in order to survive.[Edit by="jluesse on Jul 31, 8:16:54 PM"][/Edit]