Dodesukaden (1970)
Dodes'ka-den (どですかでん Dodesukaden, nonce word equivalent to "Clickety-clack")
The film title "Dodeska-den" are the playacting "words" uttered by the boy character to mimick the sound of his imaginary tram (trolley car) in motion. It is not a real onomatopoeic word in the Japanese vocabulary, but was invented by author Shūgorō Yamamoto in Kisetsu no nai machi (ja) ("A Town Without Seasons"), the original story on which the film was based.
In standard Japanese language, this sound would be described as gatan goton, equivalent to "clickity-clack" in English
The film is an anthology of overlapping vignettes exploring the lives of a variety of characters who happen to live in a suburbial shantytown atop a rubbish dump. The first to be introduced is the boy Roku-chan, who lives in a fantasy world in which he is a tram (trolley) conductor. In his fantasy world, he is both the tram and the tram driver and follows a set route and schedule through the dump, reciting the refrain "Dodeska-den", "clickety-clack", mimicking the sound of his vehicle. His dedication to the fantasy is fanatical. Roku-chan is called "trolley fool" (densha baka) by locals and by children who are outsiders. His mother is shown as being concerned that Roku-chan is genuinely mentally-challenged. (Roku-chan has earned the label in several cinematographic writings (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodes%27ka-den)
OAL: This movie is was boring, I don't often come out and say it, but I watched to fulfill a watch challenge, and chose it because of Kurosawa. It is downright depressing.
Found at:
