Passion

This film essentially begins with a bored housewife by the name of "Sonoko Kakiuchi" (Kyoko Kishida) deciding to fill some time by taking some courses at a nearby art school. While there she happens to notice another art student named "Mitsuko Tokumitsu" (Ayako Wakao) and immediately falls in love with her. So much so, that she even transposes Mitsuko's face onto a portrait she was drawing of a female model in her class. It's during this time that the principal of the school notices her artwork and immediately recognizes the difference and remarks about it in front of the class. Needless to say, this causes quite a bit of gossip among the other female students who quickly speculate about a romantic involvement between the two--even though Sonoko has never even spoken to Mitsuko at that time. So, to remedy that situation, Sonoko eventually summons enough courage and introduces herself. Not long afterward, the two become lovers. Naturally, it isn't too long before Sonoko's husband "Kotaro Kakiuchi" (Eiji Funakoshi) and Mitsuko's fiancé "Eijro Watanuki" (Yusuke Kawazu) realize what is happening--and things immediately take a turn for the worse from that point on. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was a bizarre romantic drama which clearly benefited from the acting of Kyoko Kishida and the beauty of Ayako Wakao. Admittedly, it starts off a bit slow and features some typical Japanese overacting at times, but even so, I enjoyed this film for the most part, and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

'Manji' is a film worth seeing. Written by Kaneto Shindô (of 'Onibaba' fame) and based on a novel by Tanizaki (of 'Some Prefer Nettles' fame), the story chronicles the decent/ascent of the unhappily married woman, Sonoko, into an obsessive/liberating relationship with another woman, Mitsuko, associated throughout the film with the goddess of mercy. While all of the main characters' emotions run high, placing 'Manji' firmly in the genre of melodrama, the emotional intensity is always tempered with an element of sly humor. Both Sonoko and Mitsuko have complex motivations, and each is keenly aware of the machinations of the other, ensuring that the story is about passion, weakness, and love, and not about unexamined emotions and victimization.

The cinematography, the actors, the symbols. Everything is perfectly placed to create a tale of lust, obsession, and betrayal. At first, I wasn't sure if I liked this movie. But toward the middle, the more the plot spun into what seemed like a million different twists I hadn't seen coming, the more and more I trusted this film knew what it was doing. I won't give anything away. But fans of Junji Ito's Tomie would approve of this one. //Little light on the gore though. XD

What do you get when you combine early-60's hairdo's and makeup, histrionic Japanese love triangles and forbidden lesbian passion? In this case, a wonderfully bonkers movie that deserves a larger cult audience.

Any movie that features blood oaths, suicide pacts, taboo love affairs and a wife screaming "You don't love me enough! I need more love!" is one I'll want to see again and again. (Too bad it's so hard to come by in the U.S. -- the film screened recently at the American Cinematheque and Outfest in L.A., and at the San Francisco Gay/Lesbian Film Festival, but apparently only after much paperwork with Japan. Still, if you actually get a chance to see it, DO NOT MISS IT!

Lurid. Hysterical. Gaping improbabilities and plot holes. I thought this might be a must-see because of the presence of Kyoko Kishida, long-faced, thick-lipped, huge-eyed woman in Suna no onna made the same year as Manji and the bizarre nurse in Tanin no kao made two years later. Turns out her other-worldliness was Teshigahara's invention. She's had a much varied 44 year career, mostly away from us here. See Manji for Teshigahara's woman and nurse.

The other woman, despite a long, somewhat distinguished career, looks and acts like an Elizabeth Taylor stand-in tumbled out of Tennessee Williams land. But surely this is director Masmura's invention.

(Manji, by the way, is the Buddhist cross on the DVD box.)