S is for... [part 3]

Only twelve minutes into Sex & Fury, our badass heroine Ocho (Reiko Ike) duels a dozen men in the snow with a samurai sword--stark naked! You can bet Quentin Tarentino watched a lot of "Pinky Violence" flicks as he was working on Kill Bill. Ocho--gambler, pickpocket, and all-around babe--wants to avenge the murder of her father. She picks up their trail after helping a would-be anarchist assassin escape from the law, only to become embroiled in political machinations with a Western badass gambler/secret agent of dubious loyalty (Christina Lindberg, Thriller: A Cruel Picture, a.k.a. They Call Her One-Eye). You'd expect a movie like this to have a lot of lurid sequences but no plot to speak of; the particular glory of Sex & Fury is that lurid sequences abound--rape of a virgin, girl-on-girl action, garish spurting blood, a squad of switch-blade-wielding nuns (!)--and it has a coherent (if utterly preposterous) story. Ike, star of similar movies like Female Yakuza Tale: Inquisition and Torture and the Girl Boss series (all exemplary of the Japanese "Pinky Violence" subgenre), is by turns vulnerable and tough as nails. Her powerful presence lifts Sex & Fury above mere sadistic kicks and gives it an actual emotional core, underscored with psychedelic guitar. (synopsis provided by Amazon.com)

released 1973

directed by Norifumi Suzuki

F is for...

Gonzo doesn't begin to describe this wild women-in-prison film. A mad mix of outrageous exploitation, flamboyant art movie, and energetic comic book, this manga-inspired cult classic is actually the second film in a series, but you hardly need the history. Matsu (Meiko Kaji, of Lady Snowblood fame) is an innocent woman in jail who defies the sadistic warden and brutal guards with silent stares and sudden strikes. Nicknamed "Scorpion" for her lethal, lightning attacks, she is systematically abused, tortured, and humiliated by the vengeful warden (guess why he wears that eye patch), but escapes with a chain gang and leads the cops on a violent chase through the countryside. The doomed "Seven Sinful Women" are systematically cut down by the trigger-happy posse, but not before they take a few with them. Kaji gives a near silent performance as the smoldering Matsu, who stares out from under artfully tousled hair with piercing eyes and spars with her bullying, psychotic cellblock rival. Director Shunya Ito paints his striking set pieces in brilliant colors: an autumnal death scene that turns from restful, leaf-blown orange to a desolate gray in a flash, a blue waterfall that suddenly runs red with blood, an escape down a literal mountain of garbage. Never has exploitation looked so beautiful.

Mastered from a gorgeous widescreen print, the image is sharp and the colors vivid. The subtitles are printed on the film, but in this case they are easy to read and grammatically sound. The DVD also features the theatrical trailer and informative liner notes that chart the series' background history by film programmer and historian Chris D. (synopsis provided by Amazon.com)

directed by Shunya Ito

released 1972

Female Prisoner #701 Scorpion: Beast Stable [1973]

After watching the first Female Prisoner #701 Scorpion film – I wasn’t exactly impressed – I wanted a pinky violence film but got a women-in-prison film. Even though I was disappointed - I really wanted to give the second film - Jailhouse 41 - a try. The only problem with that is the second film is mysteriously out of print – yet the third and fourth films in the series come in a box set along with the first. In the mood for a kind of pinky violence film – I decided to give Beast Stable a shot.

Scorpion (played by Meiko Kaji) is still on the run from the law – ever since her boyfriend a crooked cop set her up in the first film. Beast Stable opens with Scorpion narrowly escaping capture by cutting off a detectives arm after he handcuffs her. Yuki, a prostitute, meets Scorpion as she’s trying to escape the handcuffs – and takes her in. Scorpion goes on to cross a local gangster – while the one armed detective is still searching for her – but little do they know - they don’t want to corner the Scorpion.

This film is fantastic in so many aspects – I’m really kicking myself for not watching it sooner. It’s visually stunning and surreal – but that’s not to say that it doesn’t have a pretty good dose of sleaze, violence and exploitation-like bizarreness. When I say a pretty good dose – I don’t mean over-the-top – it’s fairly low-key when compared to other pinky violence films released by Toei around the same time.

I really liked Meiko Kaji as the Scorpion – first off she’s gorgeous – secondly she’s the lead character but has so few lines - so she has to play the character more with body language and blank facial expressions that blossom when alone (or with Yuki - who I felt there was a developing quiet love story). You also have to take into account that she’s an escapee so she’s also got to blend in and be so subtle about all that she does in public – even though she’s an extremely dangerous person to the people who cross her.

Kaji has the direction of Shunya Ito to thank for really helping pull together a great performance with a great film. Ito uses surreal elements to help provide tension or to help express what the Scorpion has bottled up inside of her. He also uses the composition of the frame and the angle at which he shoots as a way of helping build up the audiences reaction to a particular scene.

I thought it was interesting – that the film dealt with a taboo politically charged topic at one point – that was handled and show in two different ways simultaneously – as to not preach to an audience. In some of the exploitation films I’ve seen – they usually take on a taboo topic head on – and tell you – this is how you should feel and we will be exploiting it as a motive.

That’s not to say the film doesn’t have its flaws – such as how the One Armed Detective connected both Yuki and the Scorpion – maybe I missed something but Yuki never tipped her hand to anyone from what I remember. I thought Yuki’s mentally handicapped brother was a bit over the top – but that’s what an exploitation film is supposed to be (not exploited in a ‘duh-duh’ way mind you).

My only other confusion was I kept expecting the lead gangster’s woman to turn out to be a dude – but I guess she just wasn’t an attractive lady… With biggish hands… And 5 o’clock shadow...

This is a great film – and I think it’s great as part of the series – and would even work as a stand alone film. I’m giving this one a perfect 5 out of 5.

Female Demon Ohyaku [1968]

Ohyaku has been running away from her mother’s shadow for her entire life – but when she meets Shin (a thief planning a huge heist on the mint) – she falls in love and is given the strength to move past that shadow. But when Shin is killed after the heist – Ohyaku has to discover her own strength to gain vengeance on his killers.

Certainly a precursor to what would be known as the pinky violence genre – but still in the range of “pinku”. This film is wonderfully shot in black & white – though it may detract from some more of the scandalous and possibly beautiful aspects of the film (namely Ohyaku’s tattoo – which could come off as quite powerful if shown in full color). This film doesn’t feature any nudity though it features plenty of the over the top violence, sex and torture one comes to expect of the later films in the pinky violence genre.

Directed by Yoshihiro Ishikawa - I give this film a solid 4 out of 5 - for those who might wonder if they pinky violence genre is worth all my talk - it's kind of a pinky-lite - not as garish but just as fun.