Overview: In the shell-shocked, rubble-strewn wasteland of postwar Tokyo during the Allied Occupation, a group of prostitutes band to together to form a makeshift guild with the aim of pooling their resources to build a dancehall called Paradise.

As their independent existence becomes threatened by the hawkish parade of gangsters, black marketeers and would-be pimps all looking for a cut from their flesh-peddling, the discovery of an unexploded bomb in the cavernous burned-out building where they ply their trade throws their dreams into further jeopardy.

Hideo Gosha (Violent Streets, Yakuza Wives) brings a fresh eye to this oft-filmed story by Taijiro Tamura, best known from its 1964 adaptation by Seijun Suzuki, resulting in a powerful and compelling drama making its home premiere for the very first time outside of Japan courtesy of 88 Films.

Blu-ray Verdict: Lust, fascination, fear, desperation, and suffering are etched into every frame of this lush, transcendent proto-Nikkatsu Roman sexploitation flick. Simply put, it’s mountaintop melodrama!

This film only had 10 days of pre-production. That’s insane. Production designer Takeo Kimura’s sets are fantastic and the movie is gorgeous from root to fruit.

The world portrayed is theatrically rich, realistically populated, luridly humid, and desperately tumultuous. Master formalist Seijun Suzuki pivots from political rage to comedy to horror to titillation to gaudiness to high energy good vibes, yet somehow keeps complete tonal consistency. He’s a cinema sorcerer of the highest order. I short, this film is like a cross between Mizoguchi’s Street of Shame and West Side Story, with a super cynical and satirical anti-imperialist edge.

Bonus Features:
HIGH DEFINITION BLU-RAY PRESENTATION IN 1.85:1 ASPECT RATIO
ORIGINAL MONO 2.0 AUDIO WITH NEW ENGLISH SUBTITLES
ORIGINAL AND NEWLY COMMISSIONED ARTWORK BY ILAN SHEADY
STILLS GALLERY
LIMITED EDITION BOOKLET
LIMITED EDITION INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED OBI STRIP
AUDIO COMMENTARY BY AMBER T. AND JASPER SHARP
BRAND NEW FILMED INTRODUCTION BY EARL JACKSON
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH TOEI TATTOO ARTIST SEIJI MOURI
TRAILER
TEASER

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