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Double Suicide - Criterion Collection Director: Masahiro Shinoda Number of Items: 1 Format: Black & White, Color Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Running Time: 93 minutes Studio: Criterion Collection Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2000-08-22 Buy from Amazon

Customer Reviews: Total numer of reviews: 7 Average rating: 4.0 "A must see for any fan of the genre." Original story from the Bunraku play by Chikamatsu Monzaemon. This is excellent film directed by Masahiro Shinoda. Crafted in both bold and elegant strokes. Set in traditional Japan, this is the story of a man who becomes infactuated with a prostitue, and his carrier and family life suffer because of it. This comes with my highest recommendation. "A fantastic movie, a luminous tranfer, but lacks extras..." Double Suicide is director Masahiro Shinoda's stunning cinematic adaptation of a classic Japanese bunraku puppet drama. The film is striking in its visual look -- puppeteers (or kurago) appear on stage with the actors, as if to assist them in their actions and choices and guide them along to their inescapable fates. Shinoda's amazing film has never looked better than it does on Criterion's DVD release of the film. If you love the look and feel of a black-and-white movie, your jaw will hit the floor when you feast your eyes on the amazing transfer on this disc. Unfortunately, there are no extras or supplemental material included - no trailers, commentary, documentaries, or text pages. There is a great essay in the liner notes by film critic Claire Johnston, but I was hoping for more extensive background material on the film. Once one gets spoiled by many of Criterion's other fantastic discs (Brazil, Chasing Amy, Seven Samuari, etc.), it can be hard to accept a DVD that has "just the movie". Nonetheless, the fantastic quality of both the film itself and its gorgeous transfer makes me recommend the disc to movie-lovers everywhere!