In the Realm of the Senses (1976) Ai no korîda (original title)

Director:

Nagisa Ôshima

Writer:

Nagisa Ôshima

Release Date:

1 April 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Based on a true story set in pre-war Japan, a man and one of his servants begin a torrid affair. Their...

Plot Keywords:

Obsession | Pre War | Sexual Obsession | Desire | Leg Spreading

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Tatsuya Fuji	...	Kichizo Ishida
Eiko Matsuda	...	Sada Abe
Aoi Nakajima	...	Toku
Yasuko Matsui	...	Tagawa Inn Manager
Meika Seri	...	Matsuko (Yoshidaya maid)
Kanae Kobayashi	...	Old geisha Kikuryû
Taiji Tonoyama	...	Old Beggar
Kyôji Kokonoe	...	Teacher Ômiya
Naomi Shiraishi	...	Geisha Yaeji
Komikichi Hori	...	Mitsuwa Geisha
Kikuhei Matsunoya	...	Hôkan jester
Akiko Koyama	...	Mansaki Geisha
Yuriko Azuma	...	Mitsuwa Geisha
Rei Minami	...	Mitsuwa Geisha
Machiko Aoki	...	Mitsuwa maid
Mariko Abe	...	Kinu (Yoshidaya maid)
Kyôko Okada	...	Hangyoku (young Geisha)
Kiyomi Yasuda	...	Mitsuwa Geisha
Hiroko Fuji	...	O-Tsune (Yoshidaya head maid)
Tômi Mitsuboshi	...	Chieko (Yoshidaya maid)
Katsue Tamiyama	...	Fat Mansaki maid
Hitomi Fukuhara	...	Bullseye Umbrella Girl
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hiroko Fujino
Kazune Tomiyama

Directed by
Nagisa Ôshima

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Nagisa Ôshima

Produced by
Anatole Dauman	....	producer
Kôji Wakamatsu	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Minoru Miki

Cinematography by
Hideo Itoh

Film Editing by
Patrick Sauvion
Keiichi Uraoka

Production Design by
Shigemasa Toda

Costume Design by
Masahiro Katô
Shigemasa Toda

Makeup Department
Koji Takemura	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Susumu Iwabushi	....	production manager
Eiko Oshima	....	production manager
Katsue Tomiyama	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Yôichi Sai	....	assistant director

Art Department
Hitoshi Nojiri	....	property master
Takashi Ueno	....	property master

Sound Department
Tetsuo Yasuda	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Terumi Hosoishi	....	special effects
Isao Nishimura	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Kenichi Okamoto	....	lighting technician

Production Companies

• Argos Films
• Oshima Productions
• Shibata Organisation

Distributors

• Argos Films (1976) (France) (theatrical)
• Surrogate (1977) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Aito Mäkinen & Co (1992) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Fox Lorber (1994) (USA) (VHS)
• Forum Film (1997) (Finland) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2000) (Finland) (TV) (TV2)
• Madman Entertainment (2001) (Australia) (DVD)
• Primer Plano Film Group Video (2003) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Primer Plano Film Group (2003) (Argentina) (video)
• Atlantic Film (2006) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Future Film (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2008) (Australia) (DVD)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (1976) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Arthaus
• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (Czech Republic)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Divisa Home Video (2011) (Spain) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2008) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Ripley's Home Video (2006) (Italy) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Ai no korîda" - Japan (original title)
"Love's Bullfight" - International (English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

UK:109 min | 109 min (original version) | Argentina:103 min | Australia:107 min (2000 re-release) | Norway:104 min | Argentina:98 min (DVD version) | 102 min (final version)

Country:

Japan | France

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.50 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:(Banned) (Nova Scotia) | USA:NC-17 (re-rating) (1991) | Canada:R (Ontario) (1991) | Canada:R (Manitoba) | Canada:R (Alberta) (1998) | USA:X (original rating) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Iceland:Unrated | Finland:(Banned) (cut) (1977) | Finland:(Banned) (uncut) (1978) | Finland:(Banned) (uncut) (1976) | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (1997) | Hungary:18 | Italy:VM18 | Chile:18 | Germany:18 | New Zealand:R18 (re-rating) (2001) | Singapore:(Banned) | Finland:K-18 (uncut) (1992) | Finland:K-15 (DVD version) | Brazil:18 | Portugal:M/18 | Argentina:18 | Australia:(Banned) (1992-2000) | Australia:R (re-rating) (2000) | France:-16 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:(Banned) | Japan:R-18 (re-rating) | New Zealand:(Banned) (original rating) | Norway:18 | South Korea:18 (1999) | Sweden:15 (cut) | UK:18 | Japan:(Banned) (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Daiei-Kyoto Studios, Kyoto, Japan

Company:

Argos Films

Trivia:

Shot in Japan, the undeveloped film had to be shipped to France for development, due to Japan's strict censorship policies.

Quotes:

Kichizo:You want to make love all the time, huh?
Sada Abe:You don't think it's wrong, do you?
Kichizo:I think it's wonderful. You're beautiful.
Sada Abe:I was afraid of not being like others. I was so worried about it, I even went to see a doctor. He said I was sensitive where sex was concerned.
Kichizo:Sensitive? I hope it's incurable. Because I adore your oversensitivity.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "X-Rated" (2004)

Get Over It

It's clear that a lot of people can't get past the explicitness of this film, which is a shame. I recall a lot of embarrassed giggling last time I saw it at the cinema. The art/pornography debate seems futile to me - this is a film about an obsessive sexual relationship/love affair and it tells it like it is. But it's about as far away from the likes of "Debbie Does Dallas 26" as you can get. The film is clearly serious in intent and there is a lot of beauty in it.

The subtle political content/context of the film is often overlooked - some of the few scenes shot outside the bedroom show groups of soldiers marching the other way from the direction our characters travel - and we all know where the rising Japanese militarism and nationalism of the 1930's led.

I think the best comparison is probably with a film like "Last Tango in Paris" which dealt with similar themes in a similar way - and was also probably also pretty boring for those with a short attention span.