Adapted by Kobo Abe from his own novel, this stark human condition parable was denounced by some critics for its photographic neutrality. But director Hiroshi Teshigahara and cinematographer Hiroshi Segawa achieve a rich diversity of visual textures that adds to the sensual atmosphere of this intense drama, in which entomologist Eiji Okada finds himself trapped in the deep-dune home of social outcast, Kyoko Kishida. Even the editorial technique (shifting from languid dissolves to sharp cuts) reflects the environment and the state of the couple's relationship, which Teshigahara further explores through his use of symbolic imagery involving insects, water, skin and the chameleon sand.