There's definitely a cultural gap here if you're watching DOUBLE SUICIDE from a westerner's perspective. I've read a translation of the original play, but have never seen a performance with actual puppets as it is usually done. This film is interesting in that it uses human actors but still contains the theatrical conventions of "bunraku." We see puppeteers in black manipulating character poses, changing scenery, and planting props. This is done for more than just the thrill of being avant-garde. As in Shakespeare's ROMEO AND JULIET, fate plays a major role in the downfall of the lovers and having puppeteers manipulate the actors suggests they are not entirely in control of their sad destinies.
The acting will no doubt come across as "too stagey" to people who think cinematic acting equals mumbling every line. The style does put the audience at some distance from the action, but it allows allows us to be more contemplative. On the whole, I found DOUBLE SUICIDE stark and absorbing, a true love tragedy.
The acting will no doubt come across as "too stagey" to people who think cinematic acting equals mumbling every line. The style does put the audience at some distance from the action, but it allows allows us to be more contemplative. On the whole, I found DOUBLE SUICIDE stark and absorbing, a true love tragedy.