I finally got to see Woman in the Dunes, the 1964 Japanese “New Wave avant-garde psychological thriller” directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara and starring Eiji Okada and Kyōko Kishida.
A fascinating allegory of human existence.
In Japanese, the film is called Suna no Onna (砂の女, literally “Woman of the Sand”), while “Woman of the Dunes” would probably be Sakyū no Onna (砂丘の女. literally “Woman of the Sand Hill” or “Dune”).
As if it’s not obvious enough, sand is everywhere.
More than almost any other film I can think of, “Woman in the Dunes” uses visuals to create a tangible texture–of sand, of skin, of water seeping into sand and changing its nature. It is not so much that the woman is seductive as that you sense, as you look at her, exactly how it would feel to touch her skin. The film’s sexuality is part of its overall reality: In this pit, life is reduced to work, sleep, food and sex, and when the woman wishes for a radio, “so we could keep up with the news,” she only underlines how meaningless that would be.
I found the film’s many close-up shots somewhat disconcerting. Photos from Screen Musings.
I realize I’ve posted too muchrandomstuff on too many different topics scattered throughout the site. It’s probably best to have them inside a single thread that I can update reasonably well.
“Microblogging” I believe is what they call it nowadays. So this is where I’m going to do that.
In the meantime, here’s a photo of Lucifer–strutting about like he owns the whole neighborhood.
“When women describe Afghanistan as hell, you need to understand that they are not exaggerating. For centuries, women in this country have been harassed, tormented and punished in various ways; deprived of their right to education, removed from all social spheres, punished in extrajudicial tribunals, forced marriages and honour killings, and threatened with physical and psychological violence.”
Manila is indisputably at the centre of some of the most important urban trends of the past half-century: it is the world’s most densely populated city, and continues to grow at an exponential pace. It serves as the headquarters to one of the fastest growing economies in the world (10th in 2017, according to the World Bank). Filipinos, especially residents of Manila, travel all over the world as nurses, nannies, construction workers and sailors. They provide the mass labour fuelling the global service economy.
Relaxing on a Manila rooftop (John Christian Fjellestad CC BY 2.0Flickr)
I used to think–when I was so much younger–that when it’s time to retire, I would go back to the Philippines and live the rest of my life in that little town by the sea where I first became aware of my place in the world–but now I know that is not going to be the case.
But who knows what will happen in ten, twenty years time?
Circumstances might still change my mind, but for now I can’t think of any other place to grow old than Japan, which had been home for more than three decades now.
I’m thinking I’d do some part-time work if I’m still able, take leisurely walks in the morning, listen to jazz records in the evening, maybe do some occasional hikes in the nearby hills, and then finally finish the books that I haven’t got around to yet.
Brian Eno sounds like a perfectly decent fellow, not to mention a great artist. I have his Ambient 1: Music for Airports CD which I haven’t put on in a while but which I probably should.
I’m going to post this interview of him I just saw so I can return to it again on another day.
And before I even realized what’s happening, it’s already a week into autumn. I’ve been wishing that the hot days of summer would soon go away but now that the nights are getting longer I think I kinda miss summer.
This is probably my best photo of the summer of 2025, and I took it while driving–somewhere in Ibaraki. I like the cumulonimbus clouds in Japan; they have that dramatic look like you’re in an anime.
Recently, two events made me realize the importance of free software more than ever: my wife announced that Microsoft has increased the subscription fee of Office 365; and the Filemaker program that I have been using at the office for more than a decade just died (incompatible with Microsoft’s latest OS).
Free software means you don’t have to pay money to use it and that you have the freedom to do what you want with it (you can modify, share, even sell it for profit).
It will take time, and I don’t know how it will turn out, but I’m willing to learn how to use this free software and if I like the result, then maybe I won’t have to pay for a database program in the future anymore.
One of the things I like about living in this country: clean toilets everywhere.
It has never entered my mind though that those immovable house fixtures upon which we do our business in private are easily “upgradeable.” But why not?
Speaking of upgrades, probably the only things I would considering upgrading right now are the Far Side and Calvin and Hobbes comic books on the rack beside the toilet bowl. Or maybe even the useful little heater we put there during the winter. A lot less cheaper, too.
