Sasori Vol.4 - Grudge Song

The fourth installment in the incredible 'Female Prisoner' series, starring Meiko Kaji. Director Shunya Ito declined to direct this final part because of budget cuts. Yasuharu Hasebe takes over here, and directs a respectable final chapter to one of the most loved serials in Japanese cinema. Hasebe was also responsible for a controversial trilogy of rape themed films including "Rape! 13th Hour". His influence is seen here, as 'Grudge Song' features some over-the-top scenes of torture and rape. Of course though, not on the extreme level of his more subversive works, as I think the Scorpion series was aimed at a somewhat larger audience. This one begins with Nami on the run once again, from the angry cop that has been pursuing her through the entire series. She finds a little solace with a man (!) who hides her from the police and helps to nurse her back to health. Surprisingly, Nami allows a man to get a little close to her, however she keeps him at arms length, as she knows that no man can truly be trusted. No worries though; the film never gets bogged down by sappy romance, as that would make 'Sasori' look somehow weak. I believe she only mutters two lines of dialog to her companion throughout the film.'Grudge Song' takes a little while to pick up speed, but it surely does, just about at the halfway mark, when she is once again caught and thrown into prison. It is always a rush to see the 'Scorpion' dressed in the familiar prison stripes. I don't care how many times they do it, it never gets boring. With each passing installment Kaji seems more 'godlike'. Here she comes across as some vengeful spirit from another world. Was this sequel necessary? Not really, but who cares. A chance to experience another adventure with this amazing heroine is always welcome. If you are a fan of this series, then this film is a must. It also a good opportunity to see a film from Yasuharu Hasebe, as most of his other films are extremely hard to find. And if you are wondering if Nami puts on the black coat and hat to seek out revenge once again...She does! And this time her vengeance is more personal. Recommended!

Yasuharu Hasebe (Black Tight Killers) took over for director Shunya Ito for this, the last Female Convict Scorpion picture starring Meiko Kaji (Lady Snowblood). The film opens with Nami Matsushima (a.k.a. Matsu, a.k.a. Scorpion) once again on the lam. The police track her down at a wedding, but she manages to escape. Badly injured, she is saved by a man who works in a strip joint and holds a grudge against the police for torturing him. Can the Scorpion trust a man again? Should she?

One of the reasons Kaji decided to stop doing the Scorpion pictures is that Toei kept slashing the budget with each new installment. This film is smaller in scale and more straightforward than the first three chapters. It is easily the least of the four Scorpion films featuring Meiko Kaji; however, it is still engrossing whenever she is on the screen.

Grudge Song, Meiko Kaji's final outing as sexy female prisoner Nami Matsushima (AKA The Scorpion), opens with our beautiful anti-hero narrowly avoiding capture by the police during a wedding. Badly injured during this latest escape, our tasty fugitive breaks into a strip club where she is tended to by club employee Teruo Kudo (Masakazu Tamura), who bears a grudge against the police for torturing him when he was younger.

Grateful for his kindness, and recognising Kudo as a kindred spirit, Nami lowers her defenses and forms a relationship with the young man—but can Kudo be trusted not to betray Nami, especially when he is put under pressure by sadistic policeman Kodama (Yumi Kanei) and his brutal cohorts?

After being somewhat disappointed by director Shunya Ito's third Female Prisoner movie, Beast Stable, which I believe lacked the effortlessly cool vibe of the first two films and saw the formula becoming somewhat tired, I was excited to see that this fourth chapter for Meiko Kaji's cult character was directed by Yasuharu Hasebe, the man responsible for such delightfully depraved Pinku classics as 'Assault! Jack the Ripper' and 'Rape! 13th Hour'. Surely this guy could inject some new life into the series.

Unfortunately, Grudge Song proves to be a rather restrained affair from Hasebe, one that features little of the shocking sexual and violent content that I would normally associate with the director's work, with even the film's nastiest scene, a gang-rape, lacking his usual impact (possibly suggesting that the director was holding himself back, compelled to try and be as stylish and classy as his predecessor when dealing with such a well established franchise). Hasebe also unwisely turns Kaji's Nami into a much less sympathetic character than before, making it harder for the audience to care about her fate.

Had Hasebe given Grudge Song the same outrageous, exploitative approach that made his aforementioned titles such deviant guilty pleasures, this would have been a lot more fun, and a great way for Kaji to leave the series. Sadly, as it is, this one is my least favourite of all the Female Scorpion films.

5.5 out 10, rounded up to 6 for IMDb.

This begins well enough and has enough going on, a male helper this time, to maintain the interest until the most exciting scenes come along. It is a good idea that Meiko's seeming saviour here has had history with the police already from his days of 60s student rebellion. Flashbacks enable stand-in director Hasebe to double his violent police demonstrations with current and b/w past. This is number four in the series, however, and needed more not less in the way of interesting action and visuals. Gone are the stylish sequences and gone the surrealism. The endings, both false and actual are fun and if this is a disappointment it is no disgrace and while not the greatest of finales, probably a much better fourth episode than many might have expected. Worth seeing.

The fourth and final of the brilliant original "Sasori" films with the unrivaled Meiko Kaji, "Joshuu Sasori: 701-gô urami-bushi" aka. "Female Prisoner Scorpion: 701's Grudge Song" was directed by Yasuharu Hasebe instead of genius director Shunya Ito, who had directed the three ingenious predecessors. Even this fourth "Sasori" flick does not quite reach the brilliance of its predecessors (all three of which are unique and unrivaled masterpieces of Exploitation cinema), "Grudge Song" still outshines almost any other film of the WIP ("Women In Prison") sub-genre by a thousand times. What makes this a little less brilliant than its predecessors is probably the replacement of Shunya Ito as a director. Ito had a great passion (and a great talent) for the use of surrealism, and Yasuharo Hasebe obviously preferred to use these elements to a lesser extent. The first three "Sasori" films were THE proof that making Exploitation and Art-house cinema at the same time was possible, and while "Grudge Song" still is a wonderful example of Exploitation-Art, it does not quite live up to the brilliance of the iconic original "Joshuu 701-gô: Sasori" and the ingeniously surreal sequels "Jailhouse 41" and the third masterpiece "Beast Stable", which is arguably the greatest of them all. Nevertheless, this fourth "Sasori" film is an absolute must-see for any fan of Exploitation and serious lover of film in general, that delivers pure brilliance in many aspects.

While Meiko Kaji's character Nami Matsushima aka. "Sasori" was mainly looking for revenge in the first film, the films become more and more political throughout the series. "Grudge Song" is again full of social criticism and broaches issues such as poverty, police brutality, rebellion and the death penalty. The film once again features a lot of violence, as well as very artistic elements. The beautiful Meiko Kaji once again brilliant in the role of Sasori, I just cannot praise this great actress enough. The rest of the performances are also great, and the the film once again has "Urami-Bushi", which Kaji sings, as the main theme song. The photography is also amazing, the film is visually stunning throughout its 89 minutes.

Though it doesn't quite reach the brilliance of its predecessors "Grudge Song" is definitely also an excellent slice of Exploitation-Art and a must-see for every serious lover of cult-cinema in general and J-Exploitation in particular.