Belladonna of Sadness (1973 -- Lost, now Found!)

[AaronJ]

Apparently, they have put together a restoration of this completely trippy, completely X-rated sexual animated psycho-fantasy. And it's going to be showing at a couple locations in the US, soon.

From Indiewire:

(See the red band trailer at the link.)

Among the great lost works of cinema is the tantalizing psychedelic "Belladonna of Sadness." Eiichi Yamamoto Japanese animated film has been missing since the 1970s and is finally being distributed stateside my Cinelicious Pics in May, starting in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The film will be restored using the original 35mm camera negative and sound elements, including over 8 minutes of surreal and explicit footage cut from the negative.

"Belladonna" is surrealist exploration of adult themes. The plot centers around an assaulted woman who takes revenge by making a pact with the Devil. The trippy watercolor aesthetics mix well with the Japanese psych rock soundtrack by noted avant-garde jazz composer Masahiko Satoh. The film is the final entry in producer Osamu Tezuka's "Animerama" trilogy.

"Belladonna of Sadness" opens May 6 at the brand new Metrograph theater in New York and the Alamo Drafthouse at the New Mission in San Francisco, and at The Cinefamily in Los Angeles the week of May 13, with a national rollout to follow. Watch the trailer above.