“Double Suicide”, by Masahiro Shinoda
I absolutely loved Double Suicide, and it sits right next to Seven Samurai as my favorite film we have watched in class. It takes storytelling to an entirely different level and presents the narrative in an incredibly creative and meaningful way. Rather than being a direct adaptation of the Banraku puppet play The Love Suicides at Amijima (1721) and focusing solely on the thematic elements of the source material, director Masahiro Shinoda intentionally grounded the film in the modern world and wove elements of Japanese theater into the movie, especially the incredibly clever use of the Kuroko to push the narrative forward. By including the introduction, which conveys that the narrative is simply a play, and by including the Kuroko in the film as the hands which drive Jihei and Koharu to suicide, he makes an even larger statements regarding fate and free will.
Besides the metaphysical implications of the Kuroko, Double Suicide also touches upon other themes and complex topics, such as erotic obsession, duty, and honor, and through director Masahiro Shinoda’s unique style of portraying the narrative, he is able to pack the film dense with information without being too intrusive. Double Suicide is the opposite of an obtrusive film, but rather slick, suave, smart, and inventive. The film can be analyzed from a variety of differing perspectives. For instance, the inevitable suicide, a fate sealed upon the lovers from the very beginning, could possibly reflect the brokenness of the Japanese social system and the inability for women, as well as men, to be free to love. Considering actress Shima Iwashita played both Koharu and Osan, it seems as if she is representing both the perspective of the wife and of the courtesan. The former is bound to support her husband regardless of his affairs due to their sense of “duty to the husband”, and the courtesan isn’t allowed to love or choose her men due to her “duty as a courtesan”.
Scene: Osan explains her relationship to Koharu and reaffirms her duty to her husband.
Personally, I don’t particularly enjoy that reading, and I think director Masahiro Shinoda was attempting to convey more of a metaphysical perspective. One of the main reasons I think this was the goal was because of the brilliant introduction, which features a man discussing how the double suicide scene should play out. The setting is a modern Japanese Banraku production, and the viewer can hear the sounds of telephones ringing, bustling Kuroko actors preparing for the stage, and stagehands getting the set ready. Initially, Double Suicide conveys that the entirety of the events are taking stage on a “grand play”, orchestrated within the mind of the play director on the phone. It’s not difficult to extrapolate that the Kuroko that appear throughout the film are the “puppet masters”, or rather the unseen psychological or spiritual forces that dictate our existence and make us question how free our will really is.
Perhaps director Masahiro Shinoda was also trying to convey the depths of neurotic, erotic obsession, one that will inevitably lead a man to death. This is insinuated in the beginning of the story, not the modern-day intro but when the play actually begins on the bridge. We see Jihei walking over a bridge. He looks down and fantasizes his death with Koharu below the bridge, with the menacing Kuroko surrounding their bodies. He continues forward to the pleasure quarters, with everything around him being frozen as the play hasn’t technically started yet. As he continues forward, we see a sensual, nude courtesan, presumably receiving fellatio from a Yakuza member, and through this sequence I believe we get the theme of neurotic, erotic obsession leading to death. Jihei is fantasizing his suicide with Koharu, which accounts for the neuroticism, and the nude woman reflects the erotic obsession within Jihei. I think there’s a reason why the nude courtesan stares sullenly at the camera as Jihei walks by. She’s the only actress featured nude, and she also appears during the frozen segment. It seems as if director Masahiro Shinoda made this scene intentionally memorable, and I think he did so in order to allude to more of the overarching themes of erotic obsession and fantasy.
Scene: The Kuroko surround Jihei and Koharu's bodies.
In it’s totality, Double Suicide is amazing. The acting in this film was by far the best, and I must give huge credit to the director’s wife, Shima Iwashita, for brilliantly portraying both characters. I was unaware that Osan and Koharu were the same actress while watching the film, and it reminded me of Peter Sellers brilliant performances as different characters in Dr. Strangelove. The level of creativity and cinematic artistry in the film is outstanding, and I have no idea why Double Suicide isn’t placed among the great films of cinema. I truly haven’t seen anything like this film before. Also, this film including a lot more eroticism and sexual content than many of the previous films, utilizing nudity as an artistic tool similar to The Birth of Venus, or perhaps more aptly in this case, Manet’s Olympia, which was the first nude painting to depict a prostitute rather than a goddess. It’s films like Double Suicide that make me fall in love with cinema all over again.
Above: The courtesan (prostitute) depicted in the beginning of the Double Suicide.
Below: Édouard Manet's "Olympia", which shook the Paris art scene by depicting a proustite.
Personal Note:
I was fortunate enough to attend a traditional Japanese theater production that utilized puppets in Kyoto during my visit to Japan when I was 16. To say the least, I was incredibly impressed by the use of the Kuroko in the film, and in my mind I could imagine how the narrative would look if it were conveyed through the use of literal puppets. The way the Kuroko were utilized in the film was incredibly artful and impactful, and they themselves act as a sort of character that elevates the source material to a new meaning and understanding.
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Note after class (2/23/22)
I now further understand the symbolic significance of the nude courtesan and the Yakuza member. She is a symbol of erotic fantasy, and the Yakuza member is a reflection of Jihei’s shadow. The Yakuza is often considered in the Japanese consciousness as the “shadow”, things that occur silently and violently and beneath the scope of Japan’s social class system. The Yakuza is a also a direct result of neglect, as many of their members were formed from the "Buraku" class, otherwise known as the "untouchables" of Japan. Psychologically, the Yakuza member is symbolic of Jihei's "shadow" and the nude courtesan is symbolic of his "anima".
Image: Hokusai's ukiyo-e woodblock of the ghost of Sarashiki. The anima is understood to be both a "ghost and a woman", and this depiction of a ghost is a brilliant example of a vengeful or devouring anima. Another example of the devouring anima is seen in Ugetsu, with Lady Wakasa, both a ghost and a snake, representing the devouring anima.
According to the field of psychoanalysis (specifically Jungian psychology), the shadow refers to the dark side of an individual's personality and the anima refers to the feminine side of a male's unconscious mind. Through the symbolism of the nude courtesan and the Yakuza member, director Masahiro Shinoda reflects both Jihei's shadow and anima. Contained within Jihei's shadow is everything in his life he is trying to repress, and the film reaffirms that his obsession for Koharu leads to the degradation of his family, business, and responsibilities. With all things considered, Jihei takes the least responsible route possible, and it's precisely his erotic obsession, or rather his "anima possession", that lead him to take the actions he took. Jihei is possessed and controlled by his unconscious mind, which is exactly what the Kuroko represent.
Within Jungian psychology, "possession by the anima merely means that the autonomous character of the [anima] archetype has seized control of a part of the conscious self. That is, individuals will do and say things as enforced by the anima." Jihei has been seized by his anima, his erotic fantasy, and according to Jung this often leads to a premature death.
In part, the Kuroko reflect the "autonomous character" of anima possession by taking control of a part of the conscious self, and this fits beautifully within the theme of free will throughout the film. While anima possession isn't the only thing the Kuroko represent, as the film is complex and deals with various psychological, cultural, and metaphysical themes, at least for Jihei they certainly reflect the autonomous nature of the archetype taking control of his consciousness. And when one becomes more aligned with a singular archetype, the more unoriginal they become.
I think it’s interesting and thought provoking, and many times it’s beneficial to analyze certain stories from a Jungian perspective. While it’s not appropriate in every case, I think it’s important to look at films from every aspect, including the psychoanalytical. And of course, the connections I’m making to the archetypes in this film may be completely wrong and my analysis dubious, as I’m only a student and am learning these things day by day.
