A Doppelgänger is a phantom, or ghost, double of an individual that haunts the living double. This is the focus of Kyoshi Kurosawa’s sixth directorial film, and breaking from his usual tradition of the ambiguous and creepy, he provides an unusual mix of scares and laughs in an what can only be described as an offbeat, deadpan comedy. You could say this Kurosawa does Miike, but still focusing on his favourite topic of identity, and duality.
On her way home from shopping, Yuka sees her brother, Takashi, walking around. Calling out to him he waves her away and sends her home. Returning to her flat, she finds Takashi has already arrived, sitting, watching television. Confused she assumes she mistook someone else as her brother. The next day she receives a phone call; the police inform her that her brother committed suicide. The person in her house is not her brother, but the doppelgänger, who has taken over Takashi’s life; all his deepest desires are being realised by the new Takashi.
Michio Hayasaki is having a hard time of late, suffering from anxiety and depression, he is under pressure to complete a new robot chair, designed to help those that are not so able bodied, and have suffered spinal injuries. Having been the key success of the company, he is struggling to complete the project. His assistant talks to him about her friend’s experience of her brother’s death. She explains the folk tale, that those who see their doppelgänger will be faced with death. Hayasaki fobs this idea off as nonsense. A man of science and logic, he cares little for chit chat or emotion and decides to go home. What he discovers is the folk tale come true, when confronted by his doppelgänger; the question is, what will Hayasaki do?
Kurosawa favourite Koji Yakusho returns as the lead for this film, in a performance which is both haunting and hilarious. The ability to play a depressed, arrogant monster who doesn’t want to care for anyone but himself, and the doppelgänger opposite who explores all the desires and wants the real Hayasaki is too timid to give in to. The doppelgänger sets about changing and turning Hayasaki’s life upside down, creating an interesting power struggle in the fight to take this identity. When both start to pick up each others mannerisms, behaviours, and when it comes across that the doppelgänger is more likeable, it seems Hayasaki will be pushed to the brink of madness in order regain both his individuality and his identity.
Doppelgänger runs almost like two films. The first hour or so is a creepy, meticulous psychological thriller; we watch the character change within Hayasaki, as his double starts to take over. The further he loses his grip and control over his own life, the more prominent the double becomes, eventually causing Hayasaki to take some rather drastic steps.
It’s an interesting point to note the refusal to accept the dual identity; that all his desires could be manifested are a person that looks like but behaves how he would like to, but cannot. Is it jealousy or a despising of himself that drives him to madness? What’s also intriguing is how Kurosawa ignores the questions of where the double came from, instead focusing on the here and now and using the random appearance as a matter of fact, not to be questioned. Everyone accepts the existence of the doppelgänger, and instead we view the psychological distress and moralistic questions raised by having something that exists, who looks exactly like you, but isn’t.
The second half turns into more of the black comedy that the first half pertains to. We have some brilliantly comic moments, some over the top and nervous deaths – the acting and sound effects being used impressively to suggest insanity in the actions. At times it does become farcical, particularly one seen that resembles Raiders of the Lost Ark, with the large stone ball replaced by a large disco ball. It’s very, very funny and perhaps requires questioning as to whether it really fits in with the all theme of the film. Many people that have seen this film, have hated the switched mood of the film halfway through.
It’s easy to dislike, but it doesn’t mean it’s poor. It’s fun, and still manages to carry through the message of how Hayasaki is affected, in addition to who the other characters are. There’s a lot of quality to this film that reminded me of Takashi Miike, which is rather odd, as if this was a Miike film it would be called genius – because it isn’t it’s called oddball and a farce of film making. I agree that there are two different feelings to the film, both of which don’t really fit in, but it works well enough and you can still enjoy it as long as you’re not sitting yourself in the “arsehole” chair.
I love Kurosawa’s direction, with every shot carefully managed and perfectly weighted. From the cold, menacing scene where Hayasaki first confronts his double with sheer dread and fear, to the brilliance of his double living the wreckless lifestyle yet coming across as all innocent; like a mischievous child who doesn’t know when to quit.
It’s all shot cleverly, and more importantly convincingly, rarely feeling like there’s any use of special effects (even though we know they are) to create the illusion of two people there identical. The use of intelligent split screening carries with it a new atmosphere and takes existing direction that could have come across as boring, and injects new life into it. The fading in of different screens is also very arty, but also suggests a representation of the two involved, rather than being something gimmicky (the split doesn’t occur with anyone else but the two Hayasaki’s).
Doppelgänger does have its flaws – at times the events unfolding on-screen do seem to take a while to occur, in terms of actual scares there aren’t that many (this is another film of questions rather than scares), it’s not quite a comedy, not quite a philosophical piece, and you could say it’s perhaps a little rushed with regards to the ending. Still, even with these faults, which are not so minor in some cases, it’s better than your average film having more brains and dark humour than most of the rubbish you’re likely to witness. On screen performances are brilliant as they are engaging, humorous and disturbing. As a viewer, you need to work with the film, rather than letting the film work for you.
As it goes, it’s not the best example of Kurosawa’s work, but it’s definitely a very entertaining one. It mixes many styles and ideas, and provides some intelligent and not so intelligent scripting, while carrying the viewer forward and developing the on screen characters. A little more hard work than your average movie, but ultimately a fun ride with strange characters, and even stranger events.
Verdict: Abstract ideas of the metaphysical, crossed with hit and miss comedy. Not flawless, but a pleasurable watch nonetheless