Dodes' ka Den
Dir. Akira
Kurosawa
Characters:
Rokkuchan, a young retarded boy who imagines himself to be a trolley conductor
Mr. Tamba, a wise old man who understands the foibles of humanity
Hei, known as the "creepy man," who has never forgiven his wife for one infidelity.
Katsuko, a young woman who makes crepe-paper flowers for sale. She lives with her
brutish uncle. At the beginning of the film her mother is in the hospital.
Pregnant woman. She lives with an older man, and he likely is not the father of any
of their five children.
Drunken husbands and their wives. They live across from each other in the junkyard.
For a day the women switch husbands, but then switch them back again.
Mr. Shima. He is a mild-mannered man who lives with his brutish and boorish
wife. He has a nervous tic that the women at the water tap comment on.
Women at the water tap. Five or six women who are always seen washing dishes at
the communal water tap. They love to gossip about the others in the
junkyard.
ONE * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1. DODES' KA DEN. A young boy, Rokkuchan, stands in a shop doorway--the windows behind him reflect the passing trolley. He smiles. He goes inside and joins in Buddhist prayers with his mother. Everywhere on the walls are children's paintings of trolleys. His mother seems uncomfortable in his presence, sad. HE leaves the room, and then he pantomimes dressing himself in a uniform and goes outside. He stands in a pit filled with what seems to be garbage and junk.
2. Inside, his mother looks around at his paintings--all of trolleys. Good montage of the paintings. She crumples to the floor, as if in grief.
3. Outside the little boy, Rokkuchan, pretends to ready his "trolley car," and then he climbs on board. All the sound effects are realistic. He starts out--great point of view shot--he repeats "Dodes' ka Den," as he walks--the sound of the trolley wheels going across the tracks. Kids throw rocks at him as he passes by. They call him the crazy trolley kid. As he moves along a straight path, it is clear from the surroundings that this is a shanty town in the garbage dump. He parks his trolley and the ride is over.
4. MR. TAMBA. An old man drinks tea. He is Mr. Tamba. The boy, Rokkuchan, enters the old man's shack. Mr. Tamba asks him about this streetcar. Mr. Tamba seems to treat the boy as if he were normal. The boy leaves.
TWO * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
5. DRUNKEN HUSBAND NR. 1. A fourth and fifth characters are introduced. They also live in the shanty town. They are a man and woman. She complains about his excessive drinking and he snarls at her. Rokkuchan zooms past the man. This man goes across the field to another shack, and his friend Hatsu comes out. Hatsu's wife also complains about Hatsu coming home drunk too. The two friends leave.
6. MR. SHIMA. Now we focus on another new character--an old well-dressed man who exits from one of the shacks. He walks past five women washing at a communal water pipe in the center of the area. After he walks past, he raises his head and snarls like a pig a few times. The women watch him. Then he walks on. One of the women complains that she can't get used to Mr. Shima's "tic"--and his wife. Just then Mr. Shima's wife comes out. She is a tough-looking woman. She walks right past the five women and heads over to a vegetable vendor. She berates him until she gets her way--a cheaper price for a head of cabbage she strips down to its core.
7. PREGNANT WOMAN. Several children run out of one of the shacks. One little girl stays behind and sits on a swing. Cut to inside that shack. A pregnant woman walks away from the door. A man sits in the center of the shack, carefully setting out strands of string. He appears to be a shoemaker. She gripes about his exactness and exits. Outside, she struts her stuff, and several young men catch up with her, walk behind her, and speak provocatively about having sex with her.
8. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMAN. Interior of a shack. A young woman sits in the foreground. She is working on some craft. In the background is her father or uncle. He speaks in a mean tone to her. He seems to be a bit drunk. He is angry that the young woman's aunt insists on repayment of a loan. He insults the young woman. This interior is colorful, clean, attractive. A young man comes to the door. He is a saki vendor (with a bicycle). He whispers in her ear. Then he asks, "Drinking as usual?" a reference to her father. He obviously cares for her and tries to encourage her. Then he leaves.
9. CREEPY MAN. A man exits a cardboard shack. This is Hei. He locks it with a padlock. He walks away. Another younger man exits his shack and confronts this man, who wears a long trench coat. He taunts the older man, who then stops, turns around, and stares at him (in CU). The younger man is intimidated and leaves him alone. Then he goes over to the five women at the water tap and complains about the creepy man.
10. FATHER & SON. Another two characters are introduced. A man and his son sit outside of a ruined automobile. They have a long conversation about building their own house. Their discussion touches on house styles and other issues of home-building.
THREE * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
11. DODES' KA DEN. Rokkuchan moves through an impressionistic landscape, as if he is inside of one of his colorful drawings. This done in a montage structure.
12. WOMEN AT WATER TAP. The creepy man in the brown trench coat walks by the women. Then the women at the water tap begin to gossip about him. One young woman there tells the story of the time she snuck over to his shack with the intention of seducing him. But he was asleep and groaning fitfully. She thinks he called out a woman's name--Ocho. She was afraid.
13. KATSUKO-YOUNG WOMAN. Another young man in an interior of a shack. He prepares some tea. Then back to the shack of the angry and drunken uncle. He is shown on one side of the frame, and the young woman on the other. He is eating and still griping. She works on quietly.
14. DRUNKEN HUSBAND NR. 2. Cut to a scene of two young people eating dinner. This is Hatsu and his wife. She wants him to stop drinking, but then his buddy from across the way barges in and two men begin to drink. They have a drunken conversation, with the neighbor complaining about his wife. Finally, Hatsu exits, and now his wife has the neighbor alone. She tries to seduce him, but he falls asleep. She is Yoshiko.
15. FATHER & SON. For the first time we see a scene outside of the garbage dump. The little boy who lives in the rusted car is downtown. The boy begs scraps from kitchens of restaurants. Then we see him back at the rusted car, where his father sleeps. His father wakes up and begins talking about their new house again. Suddenly the music goes up and we see, from their point of view, images of the car against a green hill.
FOUR * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
16. MR. TAMBA & THIEF. A young woman tying blue carnations in the shack. This is the young woman who lives with the abusive uncle. She is so tired she drops over. A thief breaks into Mr. Tamba's house. He grabs a box, but before he exits, Mr. Tamba says, "Not that. Those are my tools." He gets some money from another place, gives it to the man--obviously someone he knows--and the man exits. Mr. Tamba goes back to sleep.
17. FATHER & SON. The young boy and his father eat the fish the boy begged from restaurants. Again the father dreams about their new home, and we see his fantasy.
18. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMAN. Katsuko, looking weary, walks along the trail. The saki vendor pulls up. The young man loves her, and he hates what the drunkard uncle is doing to her.
19. DODES' KA DEN. An artist is at work, with easel, right in front of Dodes' ka Den, who is running his "trolley." Finally the man gets out of the way. The boy explains that the man should not sit on the tracks. The boy's mother erases graffiti making fun of her trolley boy, and then goes inside to cook food. Apparently she sells cooked food.
20. CREEPY MAN. A well-dressed women approaches the creepy man's cardboard shack. She waits nearby, obviously in great emotional distress. Suddenly the creepy man shows up. She goes inside. "It's me," she says. This scene goes on a long time. HE does not speak to her. He simply sits and tears strips of silk from old garments. We had seen him earlier depositing a bag of such rags in a waste bin. She undoes some of her garment, sits down, and joins him in ripping silk.
21. WOMEN AT THE WATER TAP. Big news is that the two couples have switched husbands--so the husband of Couple Nr. 1 now lives with the woman from Couple Nr. 2. Meanwhile, Dodes' ka Den, in the rain, runs his "trolley." He straps an umbrella to his back so that he keeps dry.
FIVE * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
22. FATHER & SON. The father imagines a house with different colored backdrops. There seems little difference between the bright fantasy colors of his house and the bright fantasy colors of Dodes' ka Den's paintings of his trolley.
23. DRUNKEN HUSBANDS & MR. TAMBA. One of the drunken husbands is raging about with a large sword in the rain. Everyone is afraid. Suddenly, Mr. Tamba comes out, an umbrella against the rain, and talks the crazed man out of this foolishness. Then he tells everyone, "It's all right," and goes back inside.
24. DRUNKEN HUSBANDS. Later, the drunken husband talks to the other drunken husband about what happened. We see the scene from his point of view. There in a close shot is the drunken husband and Mr. Tamba, who asks, "Shall I do it for a while? Your arm looks tired." The man, stunned at this tactic, gives up the sword swinging.
25. FATHER & SON. The two are shown along a low wall. The father continues to imagine what their house will look like, and we see more fantasy images of that house.
26. PREGNANT WOMAN. Meal time inside the house of the pregnant woman and her older husband. The five kids are there.
27. MR. TAMBA AND HIS THIEF. The Creepy Man, who was also a thief, is now shown confessing his self-loathing to Mr. Tamba, in Mr. Tamba's shack. The man wants only to die. So Mr. Tamba provides him with a poison that will kill him in one hour. The man greedily takes it, sits down, and confesses again--this time the story of all the losses he experienced from WW II and afterwards. Mr. Tamba tactfully listens and then tells the man he should not kill himself because then he is killing all memories of happy times. Now the man wants an antidote to the poison. He begins to scream, "Murderer!" But Mr. Tamba explains he only gave the man antacid.
SIX * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
28. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMAN. She is asleep amid red carnations. Again she has overworked. Her uncle comes upon her, and when she wakes up, tells her to lie still. Then he begins to move on top of her and turns out the light.
29. FATHER & SON The boy is boiling fish for his father. The father exits the small car and they begin to talk again about their house--this time focusing on the kitchen.
30. WOMEN AT THE WATER TAP. Several people watch the new woman, who came to the creepy man. She is gathering silk clothes she has washed. Meanwhile, the women at the well gossip about the appearance of this woman.
31. CREEPY MAN AND OCHO. Inside the creepy man's house. He is weaving silk garments on a small loom. But he won't speak to the young woman. Still, he eats the food she has prepared.
32. DRUNKEN HUSBANDS. One of them gossips about something or other. Then inside the house of the PREGNANT WOMAN. The kids realize the father is not really their biological dad, but he still thinks they are dear to him. They all rally around that point.
33. FATHER & SON. The two lie in their makeshift bed and look up at the stars. Both have severe cramps, probably from eating uncooked fish.
34. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMNAN. The mother has returned from the hospital. She is worried about Katsuko. The uncle seems nervous.
35. MR. TAMBA & HIS THIEF. The police arrive at Mr. Tamba's with the thief. But Mr. Tamba denies he is the man, even though the thief confesses exactly what happened between them. The police leave.
36. MR. SHIMA. (29.40). He brings guests home with him. His wife is rude and bitter in front of the three guests. She walks out. Mr. Shima prepares food and saki. Twice his guests have to endure watching his awful tics. Now the men begin to get angry about how the woman treated them. One of the men believes Mr. Shima should kick her out. This leads to near-fisticuffs between Mr. Shima and the man. Mr. Shima defends his wife, and finally the men settle down, after enduring another of Mr. Shima's tics.
SEVEN * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
37. CREEPY MAN AND HIS WIFE OCHO. Hei and Ocho in bed one night. Suddenly she confesses--she loved another man, but that is over now. She expects forgiveness. When will it come. Camera in on Mr. Hei. He says nothing.
38. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMAN. Katsuko and her mother leave the gynecologist's office. Katsuko is pregnant, but she won't reveal who the father is--obviously her uncle.
39. FATHER & SON. The father and son, both very sick, walk past the women at the water tap. They gossip about the two. Mr. Tamba goes to them, and tells the man perhaps he should take the boy to a doctor. Later, the old man tells the woman, "He's just a shy, wretched man."
40. KATSUKO'S UNCLE. The uncle and his wife talk about Katsuko's condition. Should she get an abortion? How will they pay for it. Suddenly a police officer comes and reports that Katsuko stabbed a young man (the saki vendor). They go to the station.
41. FATHER & SON. Both are sick. The boy says he will be okay soon. But he writhes in pain. His father goes outside--what to do? Then the boy is silent. He returns, and the boy is still. Is he dead? He lies there with his eyes shut. The father begins talking about their new house again.
42. KATSUKO--YOUNG WOMAN. The uncle refuses to go down to the station. He submits that she must have gotten pregnant by the young man she attacked with the knife. But his wife insists that he go down to the police station tomorrow. He refuses.
43. CREEPY MAN AND HIS WIFE OCHO. Hei refuses to forgive his wife. She leaves, and she stands by a barren tree in the open ground outside the shack. Is she contemplating suicide?
44. KATSUKO'S UNCLE. In their shack, the uncle and his wife discuss the case. The young man Katsuko stabbed will recover. But he told the police not to press charges. The uncle becomes more and more agitated. As his wife says, "If you have nothing to fear, why are you raising your voice?" Finally he nearly goes bonkers--gathering up some clothes and running away from the house.
EIGHT * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
45. FATHER & SON. We see one of the drunken husbands interacting with someone. Then the father watches his son, asleep in the back of the rusted car, and he tells the boy he will go find something to eat for them. Meanwhile, the drunken husband returns to his original wife, and then the second drunken husband comes in too, and the wife puts her original husband to bed.
46. FATHER & SON. The father returns with some fish. He prepares a fire, and he talks on and on about their new house. Suddenly the boy tries to get up, and then falls down. His arm lies outside the rear of the opening to the car. His father runs for Mr. Tamba, who opens his door and looks out at the scene. The boy is dead.
47. WOMEN AT THE WATER TAP. Life goes on in the compound.
48. KATSUKO--young woman. The young saki vendor meets her out for a walk. He asks her why she tried to kill him. She explains, when she thought of killing herself, "I was afraid you would forget me soon after I died." She could not stand that thought. That's why she tried to kill him. They part on friendly terms.
49. Mr. Tamba watches while the father digs a grave for his little boy. The father imagines their swimming pool is done--and suddenly we see it right before our eyes.
50. Mr. Shima returns home. He experiences one of his tics and then goes inside.
51. Rokkuchan returns home after a day with his "trolley." He parks it, goes inside the house, and the camera cuts to numerous images of his paintings of trolleys.
Film summary written by Robert E. Yahnke,
Copyright, Robert E. Yahnke, © 2001
Professor, General College, Univ. of Minnesota,
Reprinted by permission of the author
for educational use only