Tani Naomi and Yamamoto Shinya

Cruel History of Women's Torture, Shintoho, 1976

I feel pretty silly but, until now, I hadn't realized that the highly motivated adult film director of the 1960s and '70s, Yamamoto Shinya, was the same guy I used to watch on Japanese TV years ago.

I don't own a TV these days, and haven't for many years, but I used to see Yamamoto on risque, late-night TV programs all the time and probably wondered more than once who the little fellow with the sunglasses and mustache was.

Here's a photo in case you're as clueless as I was. Man, this guy's a legend.

Natsuki Yoko Is a Beautiful Target

 I first came across Natsuki Yoko in the 1995 Toei/V-Cinema film XX Beautiful Target (Utsukushiki Hyoteki), one of the best non-SM SM films I think I have ever seen.

Natsuki plays a coroner or a forensic pathologist (or whatever it's called) who is out to capture a deranged, sadistic murderer since the fellow seems to have taken a personal interest in her and the police haven't been successful in rounding him up.

21st Century Flower and Snake

I didn't include the last three Flower and Snake films in the chronology of Hana to Hebi in the previous post so let me just say a few words about the 2000s' versions here. Nothing really new. Most of this will probably be old hat to fans of the franchise.

The first two Flower and Snake movies of the 2000s came out in 2004 and 2005, respectively, and starred the lovely Sugimoto Aya. The first of these just seems to be known as Flower and Snake (once again) while the second one is titled Flower and Snake, Paris Shizuko.

Then, in 2010, Komukai Minako starred in Flower and Snake 3.