Sex & Fury (1973) from Tuna
Sex & Fury, or "Furyô anego den: Inoshika Ochô," is another Pinky Violence offering from Panic House, and is of the same superb quality as all of their other releases. This is more of a "girl Yakuza" than "girl gang" film, and stars Reiko Ike, whom we have seen before, but never looking better. At the start of the film, we learn that she is an accomplished pickpocket and gambler. She receives the dying wish of another gambler, to take his bank account and redeem his sister, who is to be sold into prostitution. She resolves to accomplish the mission.

Then we learn that Ike also has her own mission in life, to revenge the three people who murdered her detective father. Each has a tattoo that matches a Japanese gambling card design. Unfortunately, because of advantages gained when they killed her father, they are in charge of the Japanese ruling party. Another major player, Christina Lindberg, is a foreign spy who has taken the job because she is in love with a Japanese dissident. The dissident, it turns out, is after the same people as Ike. Ike locates the sister (Rie Saotome) and gambles with Lindberg for her freedom, but Saotome's virginity is taken by one of the bad guys, whose thing is virgins, before she is turned loose.

Ike does in the first of her targets by covering her body with poison, and having him lick it off.  The other two deaths are harder for Ike to come by. In the process, she is chained, beaten, then tied up and hung from the ceiling. My favorite scene starts with Ike in a hot tub. She is attacked, and springs out of the tub, completely naked, and dispatches dozens of armed men with a sword, first in the building, then outside in the snow. Her other fight scenes are equally impressive.

The 7.1 at IMDb demonstrates a high level of acceptance among genre fans. I agree. With impressive martial arts and copious nudity, this is an excellent Japanese exploitation film, transferred flawlessly, with plenty of extra features.

Scoop's notes:

I agree with Tuna completely. I don't know if this is the very best of the Pinky Violence films, but I know of no better one. It has all the pieces in place. The legendary Norifumi Suzuki directed. Genre icon Reiko Ike starred. You must at least rent it, if for no other reason than to see her use a sword to battle twelve warriors in a fight which finishes up in the courtyard in the snow - all while she's stark naked. I have not seen the new DVD, but based on Tuna's comments, it is a first-class presentation of one of the most entertaining exploitation films ever made.

 

DVD INFO

  • The DVD package is very attractive, and includes commentary, good optional subtitles, a pristine transfer, cast and crew bios, a trailer, and an essay on Japanese exploitation. Again, this film was made at a major studio (Toei), and reflects that in all technical aspects.

 

NUDITY REPORT

There is very good news in the nudity department. it seems like Reio Ike is naked most of the film, and shows breasts, buns, and even a hint of bush. Christine Lindberg also gives a 3b performance. Jun Midorikawa shows breasts and buns in a three way which includes Lindberg. Both Rie Saotome and Yonk Mihara show breasts.

The Critics Vote ...

  • No major reviews on file. Several genre sites are linked from the IMDb page.

The People Vote ...

The meaning of the IMDb score: 7.5 usually indicates a level of excellence equivalent to about three and a half stars from the critics. 6.0 usually indicates lukewarm watchability, comparable to approximately two and a half stars from the critics. The fives are generally not worthwhile unless they are really your kind of material, equivalent to about a two star rating from the critics, or a C- from our system. Films rated below five are generally awful even if you like that kind of film - this score is roughly equivalent to one and a half stars from the critics or a D on our scale. (Possibly even less, depending on just how far below five the rating is.

Our own guideline:

  • A means the movie is so good it will appeal to you even if you hate the genre.
  • B means the movie is not good enough to win you over if you hate the genre, but is good enough to do so if you have an open mind about this type of film. Any film rated B- or better is recommended for just about anyone. In order to rate at least a B-, a film should be both a critical and commercial success. Exceptions: (1) We will occasionally rate a film B- with good popular acceptance and bad reviews, if we believe the critics have severely underrated a film. (2) We may also assign a B- or better to a well-reviewed film which did not do well at the box office if we feel that the fault lay in the marketing of the film, and that the film might have been a hit if people had known about it. (Like, for example, The Waterdance.)
  • C+ means it has no crossover appeal, but will be considered excellent by people who enjoy this kind of movie. If this is your kind of movie, a C+ and an A are indistinguishable to you.
  • C means it is competent, but uninspired genre fare. People who like this kind of movie will think it satisfactory. Others probably will not.
  • C- indicates that it we found it to be a poor movie, but genre addicts find it watchable. Any film rated C- or better is recommended for fans of that type of film, but films with this rating should be approached with caution by mainstream audiences, who may find them incompetent or repulsive or both. If this is NOT your kind of movie, a C- and an E are indistinguishable to you.
  • D means you'll hate it even if you like the genre. We don't score films below C- that often, because we like movies and we think that most of them have at least a solid niche audience. Now that you know that, you should have serious reservations about any movie below C-. Films rated below C- generally have both bad reviews and poor popular acceptance.
  • E means that you'll hate it even if you love the genre.
  • F means that the film is not only unappealing across-the-board, but technically inept as well.

 

Based on this description, this film is a textbook C+ ... top of the genre line.

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