'Blind Woman's Curse'
(Meiko Kaji, Hoki Tokuda, Makoto Satô, et al / Blu ray / NR / 2015 / MVD)
Overview: Akemi (Kaji) is a dragon tattooed leader of the Tachibana Yakuza clan. In a duel with a rival gang Akemi slashes the eyes of an opponent and a black cat appears, to lap the blood from the gushing wound. The cat along with the eye-victim go on to pursue Akemi's gang in revenge, leaving a trail of dead Yakuza girls, their dragon tattoos skinned from their bodies!
Blu ray Verdict: Like France's Jean Rollin, Japan's Teruo Ishii stands for something. His films have a blazing signature. His obsessions are up there on the screen. The plots are coat hangers to hang his fetishes on. 'Blind Woman's Curse' is a mixed genre extravaganza that is one part yakuza melodrama, one part sword opera, and one part horror film.
Although it doesn't hold together dramatically, it is still a fantastic piece of fantasy cinema. Meiko "Scorpion" Kaji, one of the sexiest women ever to have graced the silver screen, is the head honcho of a gang who have been marked for extinction by a strange, blind swordwoman (Hoki Tokuda) and her hunchback servant (is there any other?) At the same time, another clan has it in for Meiko and her feisty, fighting girls.
Ishii slathers on the macabre and bizarre in this wonderful, malformed romp. A grotesque night carnival is one of the film's highlights, as is a flesh-carrying, blood-drinking black cat that makes a strong impression. The activities of the hunchback are always fun to watch, as are the scenes of human skinning, tattoo removal, and sexual coercion. Like every Ishii film, except the execrable 'Blind Beast Versus Killer Dwarf', this is a colorful, lurid compendium of cinematic delights. This is a Full Screen Presentation (1.33:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs and comes with the Special Features of:
New high definition digital transfer of the film prepared by Nikkatsu Studios
Presented in High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD
Uncompressed mono PCM audio
Newly translated English subtitles
Audio commentary by Japanese cinema expert Jasper Sharp
Original Trailer
Trailers for four of the films in the Meiko Kaji-starring Stray Cat Rock series, made at the same studio as Blind Woman's Curse
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
Collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Japanese cinema expert Tom Mes, illustrated with original archive stills
MVD Entertainment Group have announced the distribution of Arrow Video (UK) in North America with a host of cult titles receiving deluxe treatment in video, audio, supplements and artwork. The launch titles are: 'Day of Anger,' 'Blind Woman's Curse,' and 'Mark of the Devil.'
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