Môjû (1969)

Director:

Yasuzo Masumura

Writers:

Rampo Edogawa (story)
Yoshio Shirasaka (writer)

Release Date:

April 1969 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror

Plot:

A blind sculpter and his mother kidnap a young model.

Plot Keywords:

Rape | Dismemberment | Cult Favorite | Kidnapping | Blindness

Cast

Eiji Funakoshi	...	Michio
Mako Midori	...	Aki
Noriko Sengoku	...	Mother

Also Known As:

Blind Beast (USA)
Moju (Japan) (alternative spelling)
Warehouse

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Daieicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:18 | France:-16

Company:

Daiei Motion Picture Company

As weird as they come with some 'interesting' ideas!

The only 'pinku' film I'd seen before this one was Masaru Konuma's Wife to be Sacrificed, but that didn't prepare me for the oddity of this Japanese 'classic'! Quite what the writers and directors were on is anyone's guess, but whatever it was; it lead to them creating an interesting and unique film that is memorable thanks to it's strange storyline and the way that the ideas are presented without a lot of fuss, which only increases the potency of what the film has to say. The basis of the story is sadomasochism, but director Yasuzo Masumura seems to want to go further as the pleasure-pain idea that S&M is based on is completely overruled by the idea of absolute pleasure through the sense of touch. The film focuses on a blind sculptor who, along with his mother kidnaps a young model after he heard some young kids talking about how exquisite she is. He takes her to his warehouse, which is filled with huge statues and naturally she wants to escape as soon as possible. After a couple of failed attempts, however, she begins to buy into the sculptor's ideas, and soon develops his fixation.

This film definitely is shocking, but not because of any large amount of gore or particularly brutal sex scenes. Director Yasuzo Masumura has done an amazing thing in that he's made a film that is shocking thanks to the ideas that it promotes. Naturally, there's a fair amount of nudity; but it's very soft and clearly wasn't what the director valued most when it came to making this film. There is a rather visceral sequence towards the end which is sure to get the audience cringing, but it's not the most shocking thing about the film - which again is amazing since this would have been the standout in most other movies like this. The atmosphere is surreal throughout, and this is good as it allows the director to throw in just about anything and it comes off as being believable in spite of the fact that a lot of the ideas in the film are really quite ridiculous. I always find it difficult to judge things like acting when a film is subtitled; but the lead duo are at least believable, while Yasuzo Masumura's cinematography and attention to detail is the finishing touch that makes the film what it is. Overall, Blind Beast is a bizarre oddity that verges on brilliance. Well worth seeing!