It is no surprise that the director directly states that it is the censorship and blurring of portions of the film that makes it pornography – I would agree. This piece is a subtle work of art whose main subject matter is sex, and therefore is narrative examination of the intimacy of intimacy. In many ways, this film lacks much of the hallmark of what makes pornography pornography – that is, the illicit examination of the sex act itself on the level with the performers and focusing mainly on the penetrative and stimulating act – which is often for the audience to objectify and therefore ignore the performers. The buildup seems relatively tame for today’s cinematic experience, and what once might have seemed to be shocking content is truly disarmed by the cinematography of Hideo Ito and the breathtaking, intimate performances of Eiko Matsuda and Tatsuya Fuji. The ending of the film is shocking, completely unexpectedly mirroring an imaginary moment of gore early in the film, but one that Japanese audiences are already familiar with because of the legendary story it is based on. The skies are painted in dreamlike sunset hues while the worn doorframes and spotless tatami mats provide the perfect nesting ground for our two protagonists. The script is lyrical and poetic, and the sets of this entirely studio-filmed world magically transport us to the very realm of senses that the two main characters explore together. He leaves his wife for maid, and the two spend the film experimenting and exploring the sensory indulgences of their sexual lives. It tells the story of a sordid relationship between an ex-prostitute who just began work as a maid in a hotel, and her married boss, the hotel owner. But the story it tells is of a passionate and encompassing love affair that ends in the ultimate tragic sacrificial mutilation – based on an early twentieth century true story that is well known in Japanese culture, many see this story as a tongue in cheek tribute to the power of love as much as a warning of the dangers of the obsessions of lust and possession. This film remains a contentious censored piece in Japan where it was filmed, and had to be exported to Paris to be cut and edited and released in the version that we are receiving today in the Criterion Collection. In The Realm of the Senses is one of those early films where the genre of pornography was still in its global infancy and certainly incredibly different than what we describe it as in the 21 st century.
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