Comments: Often, I find films that play on some grand metaphor to be more fun to think about than they are to sit through. Such was the case with Doppleganger for me. In typical Kurosawa fashion there is a sense of dread that lingers throughout the film but once it gets going it plays more like a comedy caper than a drama, and this is not a horror movie by any stretch of the imagination. But it's also not a very funny movie either except in a weird sort of way--in a Kurosawa sort of way. It's not a bad film and it does have a satisfactorily meaningful resolve but I was kind of annoyed with the lead character yelling at his Doppleganger all the time so I grew impatient waiting for that resolve. YMMV
Summary: What would you do if you ran into your perfect double - somebody who looks exactly like you? That is the starting point for this supernatural thriller that explores the duality of nature. Shortly after being told that if you encounter your exact counterpart, your "doppelganger", you will die, meek scientist Hayasaki Michio comes face to face with his own. At first, he is able to ignore him, but the doppelganger becomes more and more insistent until he has no choice but to deal with him. Acclaimed director Kurosawa brings us a dazzling film about the conflict that arises when we cannot come to terms with both sides of our personality.
Dopperugengâ
2003
Japan
Doppelganger
