Sexe et Furie

Reiko Ike who was discovered by the director of this movie Norifumi Suzuki, and Kanji Amao was a popular star in Toei's Poruno (porn) movies of the '70s. She was only 16 when she was discovered while she was part timing as a nude model, and must say that she's was an early bloomer. Poruno movies were invention of the afore mentioned producer Kanji Amao, and was named to differentiate it from the Pinku (pink) movies that only featured nudity of the time. Ike and her colleague Miki Sugimoto were the two top stars for Toei Movie Studio in the '70s,

19 year old (if you could believe that) Ike plays the lead role of Ocho who's out to revenge the death of her father. Her father was a detective, and had three hanafuda (Japanese equivalent of deck of cards) in his hands when he was killed, indicating who the three culprits are. Ocho goes to find the three culprits to avenge her father's death.

Swedish centerfold, and entrepreneur Christina Lindberg (Who was also a Penthouse pet for June 1970 issue under the name of Britt Lindberg) also appears in this movie.

Director Norifumi Suzuki made some of the most entertaining and creative movies of the '70s (Like the School of Holy Beast). He's one of my most favorite Japanese movie director.

This has interesting story by director Suzuko, and excellent performance by Ike. But for a movie that's made by them, this is about average in quality. I'm still in awe of Ike's presence in this movie.

SEX AND FURY is a classic of the Toei "pinky-violence" (Japanese films typically of the 70's containing heavy violence and lots of nudity and simulated sex...)genre. A strong plot, beautiful cinematography, and a decent amount of swordplay and tits-and-ass make this one a winner.

The story surrounds Ocho - a female gambler, thief, master swordswoman...basically an all-around badass. When a fellow gambler is killed, his dying wish is for Ocho to retrieve his sister from the brothel that she's been sold to. Ocho agrees and begins a journey that will ultimately lead her to her own father's murderers - and revenge is sweet...

SEX AND FURY is so well made that it is hard to view this one strictly as a pinky-violence or exploit film. The cinematography is amazing, the fight choreography is well done, the acting is very good, the sets are elaborate, and the plot is tight and well thought out. A MAJOR high point for this film is that it also co-stars the GORGEOUS Christina Lindberg, of THRILLER: A CRUEL PICTURE fame, as a sexy British (?) spy - and of course she's showing plenty of skin in this one, too.

My only real gripe with SEX AND FURY is that there could have been a lot more violence. I would have been happier if the violence was more on par with films like the LONE WOLF AND CUB series, for example. Even so, I would definitely recommend this to fans of the aforementioned LONE WOLF AND CUB films, the ZATOICHI series, LADY SNOWBLOOD, etc...and for fans of Lindberg - seeing her naked is always a treat...Recommended 8/10

Ocho (Reiko Ike), decades after witnessing her father's merciless death, sets out on a quest to find the three responsible for the travesty and exact revenge. In her travels she befriends a handsome your anarchist who's involved with a European spy (the beautiful Christina Lindberg, perhaps best known for her "Thriller" film). This sexy spy along with co-horts wants to dismantle the country from within. All this comes together in a cinematic experience that has to be seen to be believed. Probably very controversial when it was released in Japan of the early '70's, the films more 'outragious' scenes (the battle in which Ocho is completely nude amongst others) seem almost quaint now, yet the film retains it's beautiful, almost poetic feel and is definitely one to actively search out. Followed by a sequel that couldn't really reach the same level as this had.

My Grade: B+

A masterpiece of Japanese 70s sexploitation and a pinnacle film of the Japanese Pink Violence era and no doubt influential on a host of films which came after it. This film is unique in so many ways. Reiko Ike is just gorgeous as Ocho, the Female Yakuza who not only kicks ass.. but kicks it while she's totally nude as we see in the highlight fight scene of the film shot in and outside of a Haiku House in the snow. Sound familiar? Think Kill Bill. The characters are all slick and seedy, some seem to be taken right out of a comic book. The photography is well mastered. The fighting choreography is great, the scenes are ultra violent with blood spraying action and a bevy of erotic sex. Recommended for any fan of Asian sexploitation and martial arts violence. The follow up film to this is Female Yakuza Tale.. which I also recommend for even more over the top sex and sword sport.

Pinky violence films are often a real mixed bag and you can never be really sure what you're going to get when going into one. For me, Sex and Fury is not one of the major highlights of the genre; but it's an extremely well made, interesting and inventive effort that I'm sure will be appreciated by fans of this sort of film. The film brings together a number of common genre elements; we've got swordfights, gambling houses and plenty of nudity; which is good, but the script could have done with a little more focus, as the film has a tendency to descend into a mess. The plot focuses on Ocho; a Japanese pickpocket and gambler. After a fight in a gambling house, Ocho ends up with a fellow gambler dying in her arms. His last wish is for her to track down his sister and pay some money to prevent her being sold to a brothel. She sets off to fulfil this wish, but during her journey happens on information pertaining to the whereabouts of her fathers killers, and so sets about getting revenge.

The film starts with a bang as not long after it starts, we are treated to a swordfight in which the lead characters battles her foes naked. This fight is really well done; but unfortunately the film never reaches this dizzy high for the rest of the runtime. The film is not particularly violent compared to the rest of the genre, although there are a few good and well choreographed fight scenes. Aside from the main plot, we have another little story involving a "British" spy, played by Swedish actress Christina Lindberg. She's nice looking, but an awful actress and this plot really only serves in making the whole thing more complicated. It's not really believable either, and feels a bit ridiculous. Anyway, this is made up for somewhat by a fantastic score that features often throughout the film. There's plenty of nudity and as always, most of the actresses are very nice to look at. The film all boils down to a decent conclusion that gives closure to most of the plots featured. Overall; this is not among the best of the genre, but it's a good film and worth seeing.