1. Shogun's Sadism (1976)
Another Japanese torture-fest, at least this one has the decency to couch its depravity in a storyline. Following in the steps of the infamous Shogun's Joy of Torture (which I really tried but could not find a copy of to review) the film is cut into two stories and both feature graphic, not for the squeamish, hardcore torture sequences. In the first story, a peasant girl saves the life of a guard by sucking out the venom from a snake bite he has received. They fall in love, but because the girl's family is rumoured to be Christian this runs foul of the Tokugawa Shogunate and thus follows graphic torture, far worse than anything the Spanish Inquisition could summon up. The second story concerns a prostitute who falls in love with the brothel handy man. They try to escape and yes, the inevitable torture as punishment ensues. It all seems dreadfully out of proportion. Life in Japan must have been very scary during this era. Among the delights we get to see are: liberal rape scenes, women thrown into a pit of snakes, a woman dismembered by having her four limbs tied to four oxen and... well, you get the idea, a little girl blinded and forced to beg, a prostitute having the foetus ripped out of her stomach and made to have sex with a client as she is dying. Sound depraved? The film's impact is heightened by its high production values. The costumes are good, the acting is good and the direction is good. That, combined with the doomed love stories, gives the film a sadness and melancholy that cuts a swish through the depravity. It is an utterly absorbing movie because of that and when you watch it, you will find yourself drawn in. Your stomach may churn, but you will sit it out to the bitter end.
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