DVD Review: The Japanese Wife Next Door

My review is up over at the revamped and fantastic Cinema Nocturna! Enjoy!

You want the new 2nd Edition Pink Eiga S&M Hunter DVD?

You want the new Robin Bougie designed S & M Hunter DVD for free? Then click on the on the pretty picture below to find out how!

Cinema Sewer goes Pink Eiga!

My colleague over at AV Maniacs and the creator of the fine Cinema Sewer publications, Robin Bougie, has turned his hand to DVD cover art for Pink Eiga for their 2nd edition of S+M Hunter and it looks fantastic, maybe Pink Eiga should have reversible cover art from now, like Shameless and Arrow film in the UK with the original poster art on one side and Robin's creations on the other!

DVD News: More Pink Eiga Goodness!

More fantastic releases from Pink Eiga on the way - will try and get round to properly reviewing all of them very soon, but coming on January 14th are "The Japanese Wife Next Door" and "Groper Train: Wedding Capriccio"

A businessman’s life is almost complete; all he needs is a wife. He meets two prospective women… But ends up marrying the one who’s a secret nympho! Unable to satisfy her lust, the new wife seduces the rest of his family — including the businessman’s sister and grandpa! Folks, as the cover suggest – this one is as naughty as they get!

Directed by “Mr. Pink,” Yutaka Ikejima, and starring the erotic bombshell, Reiko Yamaguchi, the JAPANESE WIFE NEXT DOOR is a hilarious and nasty erotic comedy! The film had its North American premier at the prestigious 2009 New York Asian Film Festival.



Full DVD Specs:
Genre – Erotic Comedy
Year – 2004
TRT – 61 min.
English Subtitles
Region 0 DVD Plays Worldwide
DVD SPECS:
• Japanese Language with English Subtitles
• Widescreen Presentation
• Still Image Slideshow
• “The Japanese Wife Next Door” Original Artwork
• “The Japanese Wife Next Door” International Trailers
• Cast and Crew Biographies and Filmographies
• Featurette: Interview with Director Yutaka Ikejima
• Featurette: Interview with Star Reiko Yamaguchi
• Full-Length Video Commentary with Cast & Crew
• Sneak Peeks: More PINK EIGA Trailers

BUY FROM AMAZON.COM



The world’s greatest detective, Kuroda, is back and this time hired by a politician to find his estranged daughter. When the daughter is found dead, the mystery deepens. Meanwhile, Kuroda’s assistant tries to stop her arranged marriage to a country hick by shacking-up with a composer who writes symphonies on his calculator — when he’s not groping women on the Tokyo trains!

Directed by 2008 Academy Award® Winner Yojiro Takita (‘DEPARTURES’), GROPER TRAIN: WEDDING CAPRICCIO is a comedic, sex-filled train ride and a clever mystery with mind-bending film references!The film had its North American premier at the prestigious 2009 New York Asian Film Festival.

Full DVD Specs:
Genre – Comedy/Mystery
Year – 1984
TRT – 67 min.
English Subtitles
Region 0 DVD Plays Worldwide
Special Features:
• Japanese Language with English Subtitles
• Widescreen Edition
• Featurette: ‘Riding the Groper Train: The Rise & Fall of Groper Train
• Mr. Pink Talks About the Groper Train series
• Groper Train International Movie Trailer
• Cast and Crew Biographies and Filmographies
• Still Image Slideshow
• Original Japanese Movie Poster
• Sneak Peek: More PINK EIGA Trailers

BUY FROM AMAZON.COM

DVD Review: Tsumugi

DVD Released: May 19th, 2009
Approximate Running Time: 62 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Non-Anamorphic
Rating: NR
Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo Japanese
Subtitles: English
DVD Release: Pink Eiga
Region Coding: Region 0 NTSC
Retail Price: $19.99 (BUY)

Tsumugi - Seifuku bisyojo sensei atashi wo daite

The Film

Tsumugi is the latest title from US outfit Pink Eiga who are slowly but surely releasing celebrated “pink” titles into the marketplace. For the uninitiated the “pink” genre must follow some pretty strict guidelines:

1. The film must have the requisite number of sex scenes (typically a minimum of five).
2. The film must be approximately one hour in length (perfect for the Pink Eiga triple-bill format).
3. It must be shot on 35 mm film (or occasionally 16mm) in a week and finished within one month.
4. The film must be completed within an extremely limited budget (around $35,000 US).

Tsumugi stars AV idol Sora Aoi, as the titular student who starts an affair with her teacher Mr. Katagiri (Takashi Naha) who in turn is having a liaison with another teacher, Yoko, despite his wife about to give birth to their first child. In addition to this Tsumugi is very keen on one of her class mates as well, so all in all many love triangles are occurring as we are introduced to each character!

Katagiri despite realising what he’s doing is wrong starts a relationship with Tsumugi as well as keeping Yoko happy as well; Tsumugi is happy with her experienced lover but likes to have fun with Kosuke, her classmate although he is very much less experienced in the bedroom area. We are also introduced to a punk rocker friend of Katagiri who also experiences a life lesson which I won’t allude to so as to not spoil the movie. Yoko however, who seems to very much love Katagiri, soon discovers the tryst between Tsumugi and him and she is not happy....

Director Hidekazu Takahara, has managed to weave a very touching, yet erotic story in little less than 62 minutes which is quite a feat, managing as well to make you care very much for the characters involved especially Tsumugi as Sora Aoi, who while being bewitchingly pretty also does an excellent job in the acting stakes and, not surprisingly given her AV background, very well in the more racy scenes.

The film I feel is trying to teach us that we all need to grow up sometime and face the consequences that life throws at us and this is all too apparent for Katagiri and his punk rock chum as we head towards the end! Tsumugi herself is in a quandary that is resolved in a surprising way in the film’s finale, as she is perhaps loved too much by Katagiri and too little by Kosuke, so what is she to do? Overall an excellent little entry into the Pink Eiga genre, and although director Takahara veered away from the main story with the punk rocker subplot, the accolades for both the film and Sora Aoi are well deserved.

Definitely one of Pink Eiga’s best releases so far, Tsumugi strikes the right balance of story, empathy and eroticism; Definitely add this to your DVD shopping list.

Transfer and Audio

The transfer is problematic but this seems to be a problem with many films within this genre, with the 1:85:1 non-anamorphic image being quite soft at times with some vertical banding apparent as well. This is due I would imagine due to it being mastered from a tape source rather than from a 35mm print which is a shame given it was only released in 2004. The 2.0 audio is fine with no real problems and the hard-matted subs are fairly precise and well translated!

Extras

The film has been released in both a Standard and Special Edition, I was given the standard edition and it includes: Hidekazu Takahara’s Director’s Notes, Tsumugi International Movie Trailers, Cast and Crew Biographies and Filmographies, Still Image Slide show, Original Japanese Movie Poster and Sneak Peeks: More PINK EIGA Trailers. Also note that the Special Edition also includes a 5.1 DD soundtrack as well as 3 featurettes, production diaries as well as a music video as well! Congratulations to Pink Eiga for such a great package as it’s always fantastic to get a bit of background into these interesting movies!

DVD News: Tsumugi - Pink Eiga

PINK EIGA, Inc. is thrilled to announce their newest release, director Hidekazu Takahara’s “TSUMUGI,” starring international sexual bombshell Sora Aoi.

Sora Aoi is Tsumugi, a typical Japanese teenager—who just happens to be in love with her teacher, Katagiri. Tsumugi seduces Katagiri and he falls for her. But at the same time, Tsumugi is attracted to her classmate, Kosuke, and soon she’s trapped in a love triangle. Now Tsumugi faces a dilemma: Who will she stay with? Filled with steamy sex as well as hardcore punk music by the legendary Japanese musician Shigeru Nakano, “TSUMUGI” captures the confusion of growing up with the thrill of first love.

Released on July 1st and available to buy now from Pink Eiga

More Pinky Violence and Horror from Panik House

Great news from Matt Kennedy at Panik House who are teaming up with Don May Jr. at Synapse Films to release some Pinky Horror titles:

"Edogawa Ranpo Zenshu: Kyofu Kikei Ningen; aka Horror Of The Malformed Men"



This is the most notorious film in the history of Japanese cinema. It has been banned since it's release in 1969, and is the film that really cemented Teruo Ishii's reputation as a master in the art of transgressive filmmaking. All rhetoric aside, this is one of the true classics of the era.

"Kaidan Hebi-onna; aka Snake Woman's Curse"

This was the first of the Pinky Horror films released by Toei. It was helmed by master director Nobuo Nakagawa, who has been called the Japanese Hitchcock, and Akemi Negishi (Sex & Fury, Lady Snowblood) stars.

Also being released are some Pinky Violence series inlcuding:

Yoen Dokufu Den : Hannya no Ohyaku; aka Sexy Deadly Legend: Female Demon Ohyaku
Yoen Dokufu Den : Hitokiri Okatsu; aka Sexy Deadly Legend: Quickdraw Okatsu
Yoen Dokufu Den : Okatsu Kyojo Tabi; aka Sexy Deadly Legend: Okatsu's Epic Journey

and



Gincho Wataridori; aka Wandering Ginza Butterfly
Gincho Nagaremono Mesuneko Bakuchi; aka Wandering Ginza She-Cat Gambler

"These films are beyond legendary, and have never been released on DVD. Some English titles may change by release date, but make no mistake that these films will be presented uncut in their original form -remastered for optimal viewing and listening enjoyment.

This particular crop of films has allowed me to present two entire series (like we did with the two Inoshika Ocho films starring Reiko Ike), which was key in my decision to license them. I had chosen not to release the entire series of Girl Boss films because I felt that not all entries were as strong as Girl Boss Guerilla, but the two Butterfly films and the three Okatsu films are all really incredible movies, so it's not a case of licensing them just to release a whole series; these films rock!

Additionally, these will not be issued as box sets, but instead as individual discs (possibly at the same time) affording the option of buying all at once or one at a time as your budget dictates."

Takashi Miike's Imprint

Just a reminder for UK folk that Takashi Miike's Master of Horrors episode "Imprint", already banned in the USA, will air on Bravo (SKY Channel 124) this Friday April 7th at 11.30pm.

Bravo have a small preview trailer available here.

Tune in then on Friday to what all the fuss is about.