Director Teruo Ishii was known early on for his crime films, but in 1968 turned to a different sort of fare, erotic torture movies with an historical setting, and now is primarily known for these films. Probably the most famous, or notorious, of these is Shogun’s Joy Of Torture, which has now received a special Blu-ray release from Arrow Video, containing bonus material and a 36-page booklet.
The film is based very loosely on actual events, and some voiceover narration at the beginning tells us, “In the Edo period of Japan, punishments were very cruel.” Indeed! It goes on to say, “The judicial cruelty that existed at that time is unimaginable to us.” Yet, here is this film, so not quite unimaginable. Anyway, in the opening scene, a woman is bound and beheaded. Moments later, a nearly naked woman is burned alive. Another woman is pulled apart by animals, something you don’t often see in films (not quite quartered, but the same idea). And we’re not even past the opening credits sequence. The film then tells three stories, each dealing with torture. In the first tale, we meet Mitsu, whose brother Shinzo was injured. There is a great moment when Mitsu realizes whose debt she’ll be in for her brother’s medical treatment, and just how she’ll be expected to pay that debt. When she goes to visit the rich man who paid for her brother’s doctor, the camera cuts away before showing us how she suffers at his advances. But the next shot, of her slowly walking home in the rain, tells us all we need to know, and is just as powerful. Her brother also knows immediately, and is understandably in a rage, but it turns out his anger comes more from jealousy. As Mitsu tries to fight him off, we can’t help but feel for her, for she has nowhere to turn. Though soon it becomes clear that she has become interested in a romantic relationship with her brother. Things become even more twisted when Shinzo is forced to watch the rich man violate his sister. There are intense, yet tender moments between brother and sister. But it is the authorities’ treatment of Mitsu later that is most intense, and the shot of her tied to an upside down cross at the water’s edge as the tide comes in is incredible and disturbing.
The second tale takes us to Juko Temple, where the new abbess, Mother Reiho, is arriving with Rintoku, her servant and lover. They soon learn that the boundary between the priests and nuns is regularly penetrated, which intrigues and excited Reiho. The dynamic between Reiho and Rintoku is interesting. Again, there is a surprising tenderness, and even beauty, to the way certain parts are shot, such as the scene where the new abbess acts as voyeur. Then we learn that Reiho has her own special brand of cruelty, and this story becomes much more intense and twisted than the first. The shot of Reiho cradling that head and laughing is fantastic. “Don’t ever leave me again,” she says to the head.
The third segment of the film relates the tale of
Horicho, a tattoo artist whom we see creating some intricate – and painful –
work on the back of a woman. The tattoo itself depicts the torture of a woman.
But another man accuses Horicho of inaccurately portraying the woman’s face,
telling him: “The expression of real
agony is not so unattractive. It shows a kind of joy, a kind of pleasure, a
strange kind of ecstasy.” And we know at that moment that before long
Horicho will be seeing some real agony, as will we. But first there is some
humor as a friend tries to help him choose his next canvas. This is the wildest
of the three tales, no question, and bits of it are difficult to watch. The film is shown in high definition, and looks excellent.
Special Features
The Blu-ray disc contains an audio commentary by Tom Mes, a film historian. He puts the film in its historical context, detailing some of the turbulence the world was experiencing in 1968, and giving information about the rigid class structure of the Japanese society depicted in cinema. He talks about director Teruo Ishii’s other work, and mentions some other films available from Arrow Video.
Teruo Ishii:
Erotic-Grotesque Maestro is an interview with Patrick Macias, in which he
talks about the film, its cast, and the state of Japanese cinema at the time of
its original release. This is approximately thirteen and a half minutes. Bind,
Torture, Thrill: Eroticism And Torture In Japanese Exploitation Cinema is an
interview with film historian Jasper Sharp, who talks about Teruo Ishii’s work,
putting this film into context. This is approximately twenty-five minutes.
The special features also include the original trailer and a photo gallery. And the booklet contains a piece by Mark Schilling titled Shogun’s Joy Of Torture: The Perverted, Perceptive World Of Teruo Ishii.
The special Blu-ray edition of Shogun’s Joy Of Torture was released on February 23, 2021 through Arrow Video.
