7. Ai No Corrida (In The Realm of the Senses) (1976)
Japanese erotic drama directed by Nagisa Oshima, the film generated a ton of controversy at the time of release due to unsimulated acts of sex between the two lead characters. The film follows Sada Abe, a former prostitute who is now a hotel maid. She is molested by the hotel's owner Kichizo ishida and they embark upon an obsessive, passionate affair which involves plenty of sexual experimentation. Ishida leaves his family for Sada who is growing more and more possessive of him. Eager to please her Ishida finds out he gets excited by strangulation during sex. Sada kills him this way and chops off his manhood. There is a lot of debate on the internet over whether this film is pornography or art. I would have to say it has more in common with works of art like Last Tango in Paris rather than a porno movie. The sexual acts in the film are imbued with meaning about love and the nature of self destruction. There is a dark, morbid eroticism in the film which also has a political context (soldiers marching outside the window signifying rising Japanese militarism in the run up to World War Two). The film is lyrical and beautifully filmed (although it is mainly confined to the apartment inhabited by the two lovers). All in all, an erotic masterpiece.