Shogun's Joy Of Torture (Arrow / Feb. 23, 2021)

[Takuma]

Arrow will be releasing one of my favourite Teruo Ishii films, the legendary shocker and box office smash hit The Joy of Torture aka Shogun’s Joy of Torture on BD. There’s been a bit of talk already in the JP cinema and Arrow threads, but I think this deserves a topic of its own.

“From the outrageous imagination of cult director Teruo Ishii (Orgies of Edo, Horrors of Malformed Men) comes this infamous omnibus of three shocking tales of crime and punishment based on true-life documented cases set during the reign of the Tokugawa shogunate.

The first tale sees the beautiful Mitsu (Masumi Tachibana) going to horrifying lengths to tend to her older brother Shinzō (Teruo Yoshida), a carpenter injured in a work accident, but the law catches up on them and metes out a terrifying retribution after they violate the ultimate taboo. In the second, unfettered passions in a Buddhist nunnery are not allowed to go unpunished after abbess Reihō (Yukie Kagawa) and her attendant Rintoku (Naomi Shiraishi) encounter a virile young monk from a neighboring temple. In the closing segment, a sadistic torturer (Fumio Watanabe) attempts to show a tattoo artist (Asao Koike) how to depict convincing expressions of faces of pain in his work by allowing him to sketch a selection of Europeans as they are tortured for entering Japan with the aim of spreading Christianity.

Ishii’s notorious portmanteau of Edo-era excess signaled a change in direction for a director until then regarded for his crime and yakuza films, setting the ball rolling on the run of grotesque historical anthologies for which he is now best remembered. Vehemently denounced by the critics of the day, Shogun’s Joy of Torture set a new benchmark for the depiction of sex, sadism and depravity in Japanese exploitation, with Ishii staging his elaborate torture methods with an unmatched verve and inventiveness.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
• Original uncompressed mono PCM audio
• Optional English subtitles
• Audio commentary by Japanese cinema expert Tom Mes
• Teruo Ishii: Erotic-Grotesque Maestro – an exclusively newly filmed interview with the author Patrick Macias
• Bind, Torture, Thrill – author and critic Jasper Sharp discusses the history of torture in Japanese exploitation cinema
• Original trailer
• Image gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jacob Phillips

[Takuma]

As this is one of my favourite Ishii films, I wanted to say a few words about it.

The film opened in September 1968. The critics were appalled. Kinema Junpo’s Tadao Sato wrote that “Japanese cinema had hit the rock bottom” with Shogun’s Joy of Torture. “History of the Shogun’s Harem was awful, but this is even worse. It’s the worst". Ishii wrote back, saying “Tadao Sato is the definition of a bigot!”.

Critics were not alone with their concerns. Top stars like Tomisaburo Wakayama and Koji Tsuruta were reportedly enraged. Their beloved samurai and yakuza film studio had turned into a circus full of naked women and malformed men running around, and their own films were released as double features with them. In 1969 during the production of Inferno of Torture Toei assistant directors issued a joint statement and protest against Ishii’s movies, saying the films “focused on nothing but abnormality, cruelty and perversions”, “lost sight of the essence of cinema”, and “were harmful for the mental wellbeing of the filmmakers who had to participate in making them.”

The audience of course loved the films. Shogun’s Joy of Torture was the 9th highest grossing Japanese movie of 1968, leaving most all-star epics featuring Takakura, Wakayama etc. eating dust at the box office. To put this in context, there were roughly 500 Japanese movies released in 1968.

Western distributors joined the club with a small delay. The Joy of Torture, Inferno of Torture and many others found their way to the European markets in the early 70s. Many were cut, and renamed. In Germany they became the “Tokugawa” series. Orgies of Edo was called Tokugawa III, even though it wasn’t set in the Tokugawa era. The Joy of Torture became Shogun’s Joy of Torture in the English speaking markets, despite the fact there is no shogun in the film! The original Japanese title translates as “Tokugawa Era Female Punishment History”.

These films remain a source of fascination to this day. One can only imagine the impact The Joy of Torture must have had on audiences when it hit the screens in 1968. But the film is much more than shocks. A lavish studio film with great production values, beautiful cinematography and clever structure that takes us from the romantic opening episode to the apocalyptic closing tale of pain and punishment as a mad tattoo artist seeks inspiration for his hellish masterpiece (actor Asao Koike’s wife later recalled this was Koike’s favourite role!).

But what I like most about Ishii’s films, is his skill at crafting atmospheric, seductive, shocking and almost otherworldly cinematic worlds where history and fantasy meet. While they can’t be recommended to the faint of heart, and might not promote the politically correct treatment of the female sex, they were so much more than the cheap blood and guts films some other filmmakers would put out.

References:
“Pinky Violence: Toei’s Bad Girl Films” (東映ピンキー・バイオレンス浪漫アルバム) (Sugisaku & Uechi, 1999).
Nendai ryukou: 60-nendai eiga (houga) ranking

[DukeTogo84]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by Takuma

As this is one of my favourite Ishii films, I wanted to say a few words about it.

The film opened in September 1968. The critics were appalled. Kinema Junpo’s Tadao Sato wrote that “Japanese cinema had hit the rock bottom” with Shogun’s Joy of Torture. “History of the Shogun’s Harem was awful, but this is even worse. It’s the worst". Ishii wrote back, saying “Tadao Sato is the definition of a bigot!”.

Critics were not alone with their concerns. Top stars like Tomisaburo Wakayama and Koji Tsuruta were reportedly enraged. Their beloved samurai and yakuza film studio had turned into a circus full of naked women and malformed men running around, and their own films were released as double features with them. In 1969 during the production of Inferno of Torture Toei assistant directors issued a joint statement and protest against Ishii’s movies, saying the films “focused on nothing but abnormality, cruelty and perversions”, “lost sight of the essence of cinema”, and “were harmful for the mental wellbeing of the filmmakers who had to participate in making them.”

The audience of course loved the films. Shogun’s Joy of Torture was the 9th highest grossing Japanese movie of 1968, leaving most all-star epics featuring Takakura, Wakayama etc. eating dust at the box office. To put this in context, there were roughly 500 Japanese movies released in 1968.

Western distributors joined the club with a small delay. The Joy of Torture, Inferno of Torture and many others found their way to the European markets in the early 70s. Many were cut, and renamed. In Germany they became the “Tokugawa” series. Orgies of Edo was called Tokugawa III, even though it wasn’t set in the Tokugawa era. The Joy of Torture became Shogun’s Joy of Torture in the English speaking markets, despite the fact there is no shogun in the film! The original Japanese title translates as “Tokugawa Era Female Punishment History”.

These films remain a source of fascination to this day. One can only imagine the impact The Joy of Torture must have had on audiences when it hit the screens in 1968. But the film is much more than shocks. A lavish studio film with great production values, beautiful cinematography and clever structure that takes us from the romantic opening episode to the apocalyptic closing tale of pain and punishment as a mad tattoo artist seeks inspiration for his hellish masterpiece (actor Asao Koike’s wife later recalled this was Koike’s favourite role!).

But what I like most about Ishii’s films, is his skill at crafting atmospheric, seductive, shocking and almost otherworldly cinematic worlds where history and fantasy meet. While they can’t be recommended to the faint of heart, and might not promote the politically correct treatment of the female sex, they were so much more than the cheap blood and guts films some other filmmakers would put out.

References:
“Pinky Violence: Toei’s Bad Girl Films” (東映ピンキー・バイオレンス浪漫アルバム) (Sugisaku & Uechi, 1999).
Nendai ryukou: 60-nendai eiga (houga) ranking

Excellent post as always Takuma. I'm just glad this is finally coming out in the US as it never had a DVD release, and I consider it one of Ishii's best films. Now, I'm hoping we get a release of Love and Crime next.

[DukeTogo84]

My copy from Diabolik has shipped out. Can't wait for this one. Hopefully more Ishii coming from Arrow.

[Takuma]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

My copy from Diabolik has shipped out. Can't wait for this one. Hopefully more Ishii coming from Arrow.

Can you please let us know the running times (what the case states, and what the disc actually runs) once you receive the disc?

Both Arrow and BBFC state 85 min for some strange reason, even though 96 min is the film's correct running time (just checked my old Toei DVD, runs exactly 1:36:00).

https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/shogu...jpwwc01mtqynzi

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by Takuma

Can you please let us know the running times (what the case states, and what the disc actually runs) once you receive the disc?

Both Arrow and BBFC state 85 min for some strange reason, even though 96 min is the film's correct running time (just checked my old Toei DVD, runs exactly 1:36:00).

https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/shogu...jpwwc01mtqynzi

Will do. I was hoping to get this today, but it looks like it will be coming in on Tuesday. I'll let you know then.

[flat_earth7]

Originally Posted by Takuma

Can you please let us know the running times (what the case states, and what the disc actually runs) once you receive the disc?

Both Arrow and BBFC state 85 min for some strange reason, even though 96 min is the film's correct running time (just checked my old Toei DVD, runs exactly 1:36:00).

Received my copy today - time in the player says 1:36:07.

Hope this helps!

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by flat_earth7

Received my copy today - time in the player says 1:36:07.

Hope this helps!

Awesome. Glad this wasn't cut.

[DukeTogo84]

Well my copy is lost in the abyss. Was supposed to have it yesterday, (technically Saturday) but now it's out there hopefully not lost.

[Member-222782]

I became mildly interested in this after reading the synopsis but I just checked the running time and it's less than 90 minutes. For what sounds like an anthology I thought it seems awfully short so I've decided to pass on it for now. I'm not big on anthologies precisely because I always feel the stories aren't allotted enough time. Maybe after I whittle down my Asian film backlog a bit and during a sale I'll grab a copy.

[wicky_J]

Originally Posted by Cinema84

I became mildly interested in this after reading the synopsis but I just checked the running time and it's less than 90 minutes. For what sounds like an anthology I thought it seems awfully short so I've decided to pass on it for now. I'm not big on anthologies precisely because I always feel the stories aren't allotted enough time. Maybe after I whittle down my Asian film backlog a bit and during a sale I'll grab a copy.

The correct run time is 96 minutes.

[flat_earth7]

Originally Posted by Cinema84

I became mildly interested in this after reading the synopsis but I just checked the running time and it's less than 90 minutes. For what sounds like an anthology I thought it seems awfully short so I've decided to pass on it for now. I'm not big on anthologies precisely because I always feel the stories aren't allotted enough time. Maybe after I whittle down my Asian film backlog a bit and during a sale I'll grab a copy.

Hi there - copy in hand, watched it and the extras, and if you've seen any of his other movies, this one is gripping, I have to admit I was a bit shocked too... and this coming from a jaded viewer. Time is 96 mins with disc in the player, and there are 2 informative extras (plus commentary from Tom Mes).

Keep it mind if it's your style of entertainment, I'm glad to have picked it up, but I'm a Teruo Ishii fan, so grain of salt etc.etc.

Stay safe everyone!

[DukeTogo84]

Review is up

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Shogu...281548/#Review

Also ended up ordering another copy from Amazon as my copy from Diabolik has been "in transit" for over two weeks. I should have my Amazon copy any minute now.

[DaveyJoe]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

Review is up

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Shogu...281548/#Review

Also ended up ordering another copy from Amazon as my copy from Diabolik has been "in transit" for over two weeks. I should have my Amazon copy any minute now.

Can I have your second copy if it ever arrives? This is the one Ishii release from Arrow I haven't ordered yet.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by DaveyJoe

Can I have your second copy if it ever arrives? This is the one Ishii release from Arrow I haven't ordered yet.

Sent you a PM.

Also, just got done watching. I felt like it looked really good. Looks like Arrow did a bit of touch up.

Haven't watched this in over a decade, but enjoyed it for the most part, especially the third tale. Seeing Fumio Watanabe and Asao Koike going full pyscho is always a treat.

[asmodeux21]

"Shogun's Joy of Torture" and "Inferno of Torture" look really nice in terms of colors on blu ray. I wish that Arrow would have done additional color correction on their blu rays of "Horrors of Malformed Men" and "Orgies of Edo". The colors in those 2 films look a bit off.

[DukeTogo84]

Curious to see what will be the next Teruo Ishii from Arrow. I'd guess it will be either Female Yakuza or Bohachi