The sensation of being caught in an endless loop is reinforced
by the main musical theme,
by Kitano regular Joe Hisaishi, a piece of treacle featuring
piano and orchestra that's repeated so many times it drills its way into your
skull, like one of the elevator - music themes of a comedy
by Jacques Tati (or, perhaps closer to the mark, Ryuichi Sakamoto's main theme for Nagisa Oshima's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, which featured Kitano's first film performance).