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Title: Kurosawa's slice of life
Review: In what appears to be a movie completely unrelated to many of his earlier works, in which Kurosawa drilled down into human nature (Stray Dog, High and Low, Rashomon), Do-Des-Ka-Den is very much a slice of life, as Kurosawa saw it. Although the viewer is often distracted by the slum environment in which the main characters lived, and even by "do-des-ka-den" (Japanese onomatopoeia for the clicketty-clack of the streetcar wheels), this movie focuses more intensely on the human condition than perhaps any of his other films. In addition, the contrasts between the poverty and the aspirations of the poor was insightful and sensitive. Do-Des-Ka-Den will never have the power or stature of Rashomon or Stray Dog, but in its genre, it will always hold a special place for those who hold Kurusawa's work in high regard.
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