Takigawa Yumi's Punishment and Punch-Up Flicks

Takigawa Yumi made her motion picture debut in February 1974 with the release of the shocking nun-sploitation film School of the Holy Beast (aka Seiju Gakuen/Convent of the Sacred Beast).

Does the US Gov't Believe in Free Speech?

Man, I hate doing this. I really do.

But in this business, the subject of free speech is a sore one. And I don't want to bury my head in the sand.

Google (owner of YouTube) is a US corporation and presumably influenced predominately by American values. If the situation were different, if Google were a Saudi corporation, based in Saudi Arabia, I would expect it to be influenced by Saudi values. And, I suspect, we'd see quite a different YouTube. Agreed?

In the US, the first amendment to the constitution reads thusly:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

If everyone agreed with everything everyone else said, there would be no need for a first amendment. So it stands to reason that this exists to protect, wait for it ... unpopular speech; speech you disagree with; speech you find objectionable; speech you hate.

That speech must be protected or the whole idea of freedom of speech rests on shaky ground indeed.

So, I clicked over to "the video" on YouTube, a video I would not have had any interest in in a million years, if not for the current uproar. I let it play for about 10 seconds. It looks like shit. But hopefully my click will be added to the total number of views. That's all I wanted to accomplish.

The straw that broke the camel's back was the US government's attempt to pressure Google  into removing the video.

Dear Mr. President:

Sorry to bother you. I guess you're kind of busy right now, putting the screws to Google and all. But while we're on the subject, there's this video on YouTube I really, really hate! It makes fun of left-handed people. It really hurts my feelings and makes me feel all uncomfortable and bad inside. I can't sleep. Could you please ask Google to remove that one, too?

What's that? No! No! No! I'm not going to get violent or anything. Not going to shoot anyone, throw any bombs.

Huh? Nothing you can do about it? Well, uh, all right then. Thanks for your time.

Un-freaking-believable.

Stand strong, Google. Give them the big, fat middle finger.

Here's the video. Do as you see fit.

Update: I just realized that article I linked to says in the headline that the White House's ham-handed move drew the ire of "civil libertarians". That's stupid. Aren't we all in favor of civil liberties? Was the wuss who wrote the headline trying to exempt himself?

Will the First SM Pink Film Please Stand Up?

I don't wish to cause any confusion, but I was doing a little research into director Mukai Kan (aka Mukai Hiroshi and even Patrick Kan) and apparently it has been alleged that Mukai's 1967 film, Sexy Partners, was the first pink film to have SM as "its primary theme".

This was found on Wikipedia and the article was quoting the book published by Thomas and Yuko Weisser, Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films.

A Visit to Ubu

I came out of my self-imposed exile the other night and went over to Ubu, an SM bar located in the Kabukicho district of Shinjuku. I went with my good friend (and model par excellence), Rida, who was able to squeeze a little playtime into her hectic schedule.

Ubu is a small watering hole that manages to extract an impressive mass of form and function from its relatively constricted space.

Another Okura Film, Spies and Chastity

This film, Spies and Chastity (Supai to Teisho), was produced by Okura Mitsugu and distributed by Shintoho in 1960. It was directed by Yamada Tatsuo. The principal actresses appear to have been Masayo Mari and Shuntaro Emi.

Onna-ro Hizu More Show than Go

Here's one you don't hear much about -- and for good reason. In the West it goes by the name Decapitation Island or Island of Horrors. In Japan it's called Onna-ro Hizu. The titles and cover pic are certainly alluring, but once you get past those, you're left with a feeling of buyer's remorse.

This film, you can't help but lament, could have rivaled Bamboo House of Dolls. Sadly, someone completely dropped the ball.

And Now for the Poster

This is the first time I've seen a theatrical poster for the 1966 film New Torture Punishment History and, once again, this site has the goods (just scroll down a bit).

I'm not a poster expert so don't quote me on this, but it seems to me that there are basically two types of posters: originals and reprints. As far as I know, I've only bought reprints at the various poster shops around town. The prices generally range from 3,000 yen to 5,000 yen but can go higher. I have seen them for cheaper online but actually pawing through these things at a shop is more fun.

Then there are the ones that are in the hundreds of dollars US which I'm assuming are originals.

Seeing this poster of New Torture Punishment History inspires me, despite the oppressive heat in Tokyo, to get out there and go on another SM safari. Man, I'd love to find this one. But I'll settle for a reprint (assuming there are any).

Trawling the internetz, I came across this Japanese blog that has some nasty drawings of purported torture methods of the Tang dynasty in China. Here's a taste:

These remind me of my trip to the Museum of Criminology at Meiji University.

The site mentions that the Japanese kimono was inspired by Tang dynasty fashion. I wonder if some folks in Japan were inspired in a different way by Tang dynasty culture?

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