Beauty's Exotic Dance: Torture!
Encyclopedia
aka Torture! and From the Banned Book "Wild Dance of a Beautiful Woman": Torture! is a 1977
Japan
ese film in Nikkatsu
's Roman porno series, directed by Noboru Tanaka
and starring Junko Miyashita
. Set during the Taishō period
, it uses Nikkatsu's superior technical resources to create what Jasper Sharp calls a pink film-style "sumptuous festival of cruelty" portraying the artistic life of the photographer, writer and kinbakushi
, Seiu Itō
.
is depicted in the film. His artistic life and Sadian
philosophy, inspired by his torturing of his two wives and Tae, his favorite prostitute, are portrayed as shown in his journalistic writings. Tae is eventually driven insane due to Itō's attentions.
(1975) and Watcher in the Attic
(1976). However, in their Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films, Thomas and Yuko Mihara Weisser give Beauty's Exotic Dance: Torture! a top-rating of four out of four stars. Noting Tanaka's use of "dark images, obsessive nihilistic philosophy, and gravely somber atmosphere", they write, "Like all of the movies from Tanaka's Mad Love period, it's filmed in matter-of-fact, non-flinching style, creating a dangerous ambivalence towards traditional concepts of right and wrong, sanity and insanity."
Allmovie calls the film "an amoral masterpiece" and one of "the most disturbing films ever released by the Nikkatsu studio". Writing that the dark and oppressive nature of the film works in its favor, the review concludes, "[t]he cumulative effect is quite powerful, and not for the faint of heart."
1977 in film
The year 1977 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*In the Academy Awards, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight win Best Actor and Actress and Supporting Actress awards for Network....
Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese film in Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
's Roman porno series, directed by Noboru Tanaka
Noboru Tanaka
was a Japanese film director best known known for his Roman Porno films, including three critically respected films known as the Showa trilogy: A Woman Called Sada Abe , Watcher in the Attic , and Beauty's Exotic Dance: Torture! , all three starring Nikkatsu Roman porno queen Junko Miyashita...
and starring Junko Miyashita
Junko Miyashita
is a Japanese actress who had a long and varied career working both in pink film and mainstream cinema.- Career :Junko Miyashita was born in Tokyo on January 29, 1949. She was working as a waitress at a coffee shop when she was recruited to work in Pink films....
. Set during the Taishō period
Taisho period
The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...
, it uses Nikkatsu's superior technical resources to create what Jasper Sharp calls a pink film-style "sumptuous festival of cruelty" portraying the artistic life of the photographer, writer and kinbakushi
Nawashi
': literally, "rope master" or "rope teacher", but in SM circles it means "rope artist". Nawashi are those who have some recognized proficiency in the historic erotic art of ' or Kinbaku-bi ': (noun) literally, "rope master" or "rope teacher", but in SM circles it means "rope artist". Nawashi...
, Seiu Itō
Seiu Ito
, also romanised as Seiyu Itoh was a Japanese painter, recognised today as "the father of modern kinbaku"...
.
Synopsis
The life of the S&M-theme artist and author Seiu ItōSeiu Ito
, also romanised as Seiyu Itoh was a Japanese painter, recognised today as "the father of modern kinbaku"...
is depicted in the film. His artistic life and Sadian
Marquis de Sade
Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade was a French aristocrat, revolutionary politician, philosopher, and writer famous for his libertine sexuality and lifestyle...
philosophy, inspired by his torturing of his two wives and Tae, his favorite prostitute, are portrayed as shown in his journalistic writings. Tae is eventually driven insane due to Itō's attentions.
Cast
- Junko MiyashitaJunko Miyashitais a Japanese actress who had a long and varied career working both in pink film and mainstream cinema.- Career :Junko Miyashita was born in Tokyo on January 29, 1949. She was working as a waitress at a coffee shop when she was recruited to work in Pink films....
as Tae - Hatsuo Yamaya (山谷初男) as Seiu ItōSeiu Ito, also romanised as Seiyu Itoh was a Japanese painter, recognised today as "the father of modern kinbaku"...
- Sumiko Minami (南寿美子) as Tae's mother, Kane
- Maya Kudō (工藤麻屋) as First wife, Shima
- Aoi Nakajima (中島葵) as Second wife, Toki
- Rie Shinjō (新城理絵) as Female model
- Hiroshi Chō (長弘) as Doctor
- Toshihiko Oda (織田俊彦) as Photographer, Saeki
- Kunio Shimizu (清水国雄) as Assistant, Aono
- Kiyofumi Ōkuri (大栗清史) as Gorō
- Yasuji Yashiro (八代康二) as Shimaoka
- Kyōichi Mizuki as Carpenter
- Wataru Kobayashi (小林亘) as Police guard
- Ikunosuke Koizumi (小泉郁之助) as Policeman A
- Ryōichi Satō (佐藤了一) as Policeman B
Critical appraisal
Because of the film's more overtly sado-masochistic theme, Beauty's Exotic Dance: Torture! received less critical acclaim than the previous two entries in Tanaka's Showa trilogy-- A Woman Called Sada AbeA Woman Called Sada Abe
aka Sada Abe: A Docu-Drama is a Roman porno version of the Sada Abe story directed by Noboru Tanaka.It is based on the true story of a woman who strangled her lover during a love-making session, then severed his penis, which she carried with her until her arrest...
(1975) and Watcher in the Attic
Watcher in the Attic
aka Stroller in the Attic, Edogawa Rampo Theater: Walker in the Attic and Walker in the Attic is a 1976 Japanese film in Nikkatsu's Roman porno series, directed by Noboru Tanaka and starring Junko Miyashita.-Synopsis:...
(1976). However, in their Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films, Thomas and Yuko Mihara Weisser give Beauty's Exotic Dance: Torture! a top-rating of four out of four stars. Noting Tanaka's use of "dark images, obsessive nihilistic philosophy, and gravely somber atmosphere", they write, "Like all of the movies from Tanaka's Mad Love period, it's filmed in matter-of-fact, non-flinching style, creating a dangerous ambivalence towards traditional concepts of right and wrong, sanity and insanity."
Allmovie calls the film "an amoral masterpiece" and one of "the most disturbing films ever released by the Nikkatsu studio". Writing that the dark and oppressive nature of the film works in its favor, the review concludes, "[t]he cumulative effect is quite powerful, and not for the faint of heart."