A magnificent, but tragic, depiction of life in the miserable suburbs of a great city (this time, Tokyo), as so many cities in the world still have to this day.
Kurosawa's magic never ceases to capture the viewer's attention.
Many have been the detractors of this movie, finding every possible excuse to dislike it, but in reality, this is the most honest, more factual and humane story, or set of stories, ever put together by a great film maker.
Those who didn't like it, are either jaded with their own life and prone to more exotic and adventurous movies, which indeed this one isn't.
"Dodes'ka-den" throws the real life of poor and abandoned people right in the face of the audience, and shows how these shanty town dwellers actually cope with their hopeless lives.
I would dare say, that this movie is as real today as it was back in 1970.
Many of the social problems shown in it, are still with us in our so called advanced modern world, and nothing seems to have budged an inch since then.
A great social study by the great master of all times, told with care and sensitivity for the lives of others.
Personally, I think we would need more such movies these days, in order to finally make people understand the real problems that our societies have for so long forgotten and set aside.
Ignoring them is a crime in itself, and this is where Kurosawa actually traced a line in the sand.
This is a film for the thinking and caring mind, not for the thrill seeking individual.
Be it as it may, this is by far not a boring or dull movie, but rather one that speaks to the human heart,