Dodesukaden (1970)

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Akira Kurosawa (screenplay) &
Hideo Oguni (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

9 June 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Episodes from the lives of a group of Tokyo slum-dwellers: Rokkuchan, a retarded boy who brings meaning...

Plot Keywords:

Poverty | Artificial Flower | Garbage Dump | Alcohol | Ghetto

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Yoshitaka Zushi	...	Roku-chan
Kin Sugai	...	Okuni
Toshiyuki Tonomura	...	Taro Sawagami
Shinsuke Minami	...	Ryotaro Sawagami
Yûko Kusunoki	...	Misao Sawagami
Junzaburô Ban	...	Yukichi Shima
Kiyoko Tange	...	Mrs. Shima
Michio Hino	...	Mr. Ikawa
Keiji Furuyama	...	Mr. Matsui
Tappei Shimokawa	...	Mr. Nomoto
Kunie Tanaka	...	Hatsutaro Kawaguchi
Jitsuko Yoshimura	...	Yoshie Kawaguchi
Hisashi Igawa	...	Masuo Masuda
Hideko Okiyama	...	Tatsu Masuda
Tatsuo Matsumura	...	Kyota Watanaka

Also Known As:

Clickety-Clack (Japan) (literal English title)
Dodes'ka-den (USA)

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Finland:K-15 | Sweden:15 | UK:A

Filming Locations:

Horie-cho, Edogawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

The crew simply called the set the "town without seasons".

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Tsukuru to iu koto wa subarashii! Kurosawa Akira: Shikisai wo te ni ireta Kurosawa Akira (2003) (V)

Kurosawa's first film in color

In 1970, after a five year absence, Kurosawa made what would be his first film in color. Dodes' Ka-Den is a film that centers around many intertwining stories that go on in a small Tokyo slum.

The title comes from the sound a mentally retarded boy makes as he imagines he is operating a train. We slowly get to know more of the people in the small community, the two drunks who trade wives because they are not happy with the ones they have. The old man who is the center of the town who helps out a burglar that tries to rob him. The very poor father and son that cannot ever afford a house, so they imagine one up of their own. By the end of the film, the stories all come full circle, some turn out happy, others sad.

Since this was Kurosawa's first color film you can see that he uses it to his advantage and it shows. Maybe too much. This movie goes in many different directions and it's hard to settle down and get into it. But don't get me wrong, Dodes' Ka-Den may not be Kurosawa's best, but coming from the greatest director of all time, it's much better than 99% of today's films.