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Tokyo Decadence

Original title: Topâzu
  • 1992
  • NC-17
  • 1h 52m
IMDb RATING
5.9/10
3.8K
YOUR RATING
Tokyo Decadence (1992)
Legal DramaPsychological DramaDrama

A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of app... Read allA submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.

  • Director
    • Ryû Murakami
  • Writer
    • Ryû Murakami
  • Stars
    • Miho Nikaido
    • Yayoi Kusama
    • Sayoko Amano
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.9/10
    3.8K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Ryû Murakami
    • Writer
      • Ryû Murakami
    • Stars
      • Miho Nikaido
      • Yayoi Kusama
      • Sayoko Amano
    • 24User reviews
    • 35Critic reviews
    • 48Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win total

    Videos1

    Trailer [OV]
    Trailer 1:26
    Trailer [OV]

    Photos42

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    Top cast10

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    Miho Nikaido
    Miho Nikaido
    • Ai
    Yayoi Kusama
    Yayoi Kusama
    • Fortuneteller
    Sayoko Amano
    • Saki
    Tenmei Kano
    • Ishioka (Mr. Satoh)
    Masahiko Shimada
    • Suzuki
    Chie Sema
    • Opera Woman
    Magayasu Ishihara
    Hiroshi Mikami
    Hiroshi Mikami
    Nami Nosaki
    Kan Mikami
    • Man in Restaurant
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Ryû Murakami
    • Writer
      • Ryû Murakami
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews24

    5.93.8K
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    Featured reviews

    7vajrasoiree

    Erotic and intellectually interesting

    Very erotic and sick at the same time. This movie leads you down the dark allies of human sexuality. But it touches more than the loins. This is mostly because of the innocence of the Ai, the main character. Her quest for true love and happiness stands in a deep contrast with the dark nighttime of Tokyo, ridden with perverse sex and cocaine.

    This movie is a must for people interested in culture, sexuality and gender roles. It gives perfect examples of how power play somehow gets us excited, but mainly rests upon images of gender and sex we have invented inside our culture. It's a little Foucault, it's a little de Sade, it's just very interesting.
    5LunarPoise

    powerful start meanders to bland finish

    Murakakmi's Tokyo Decadence starts out powerfully with an unflinching look at the shifts put in as a 'Delivery Health' (as these women get called in 21s century Japan) by hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold, Miho Nikaido. The crisp colours, seductive light and slowly dollying camera give a high productive sheen to the mesmerising scenes of Nikaido being humiliated by a Yakuza couple, then assisting a dominatrix in the wished-for degradation of one of her regular johns.

    Murakami seems to be highlighting the amorality of Bubble-rich Japan, his characters speechifying against the 'real' whores in the corporate and government fields. The sexual and comedy elements are well-balanced, the highlight being the lost dildo in the toilet scene. Nikaido shows an impressive range, both vulnerable in and enraptured by her line of work. She also enlivens a long walk with a wild-eyed look she achieves in the film's final third.

    However, her performance cannot rescue the meandering, insipid final episode when Nikaido goes in search of her true love. The introduction of a 'courage' pill is a clumsy plot device. The final section lacks clarity, and even continuity seems to be a minor concern. It is as if Murakami, having established his world so finely in the first half, is now at a loss regarding what he wants to say about it. A series of episodic and uninspiring tableaux plays out, the slightly surreal elements being the only thing that stops it from descending into an old-fashioned morality tale.

    Tokyo Decadence is a film of two halves, with the director only trying in the first.
    3claudio_carvalho

    The 92 Minutes Version Is a Soft-Porn

    In Tokyo, the hooker Ai (Miho Nikaido) works in an escort agency specialized in perversions and kinky sex. Ai is submissive to her clients and accepts to be humiliated, to perform sadomasochism and bondage and threesome. However she is unhappy with her life for some reason.

    The Brazilian VHS of "Topâzu", a.k.a. "Tokyo Decadence" is a soft-porn labeled Erotic-Thriller. There are many scenes of Miho Nikaido performing kinky sex with her clients and basically that is all. Her unrequited love was edited from this 92 minutes version where the fortuneteller instructions are senseless. It is hard to understand why the producers allow this procedure. My vote is three.

    Title (Brazil): "Tokio em Decadência" ("Tokyo in Decadence")
    DJ Inferno

    Coma society

    In view of this film our society seems to be frozen, cold as ice! The glittering world is only a facade above all soulish depths and perversions that lie beneath! "Tokyo Decadence" tells the story about a sensitive young girl who decides to serve the desires of the decadent Japanese high society! Day in, day out she has to do with cocaine sniffing pervs and guys with the sickest sexual phantasies. Slowly, but surely she becomes the ball of their obsessions, but at the end she breaks from the unbearable pressure... Like so many other Asians films from the 1990s "Tokyo Decadence" combines its gross story with elegant pictures. This flick also contains some real explicit scenes of S&M or sexual role play, so people with a too conservative mind will certainly be offended! However, those who can bear some explicit representations of erotic beyond normal will make another fine experience of 1990´s great Asian cinema!
    TidalBasinTavern

    Decent enough art house movie

    This review is for the 1:49 (109 minute) version of the film in Japanese with English subtitles. I believe this is the 'uncut' version. I was quite worried before watching this film about what I was letting myself in for after having read some of the reviews. I feared it might be something like some of Pasolini's films. I needn't have worried. Admittedly you might not want to show it to your maiden aunt.

    It's a sort of art house version of Showgirls (1995). The hallucination scenes reminds me a bit of the Mandrax infused scenes in Celine and Julie go boating (1974). So as a bit of trivia I'm guessing that is the drug Ai takes.

    It's supposedly a warts and all look at the life of a Tokyo prostitute, Ai, who specialises in S & M set at the time of the economic bubble. Obviously this could just be a flimsy excuse for a lot of gratuitous footage under the guise of Art. I'm inclined to give it the benefit of the doubt. It's never going to be a great film, but at least it does pass the Bechdel test.

    Films with a similar idea that spring to mind are Klute (1971) and Strella (2009). Both of which seemed like a more realistic portrayal, particularly Strella.I may be being a little unfair since some of it could have got lost in translation.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The film was originally banned in the Canadian province of Ontario when released there in 1994. Numerous protests from people caused the censor board to pass the film uncut with a 'Restricted' rating.
    • Quotes

      Ai: I've discovered that I have no talent - none whatsoever.

    • Alternate versions
      23 minutes, which included more nudity and explicit sex, were cut from the US version to prevent an X rating. Some of the scenes cut were:
      • The scene at the beginning is longer.
      • The scene with Mr. Satoh before he talks to his girlfriend is longer, including the scene showing him actually inserting the vibrator into Ai after she came out of the shower.
      • Ai licking both Mr. Satoh and his girlfriend as they are having sex.
      • Before Ai arrives to Mr. Satoh's room, they are slow-motion scenes showing Yakuza storming into Mr. Satoh's room, yelling at him for being a failure and restrains him. Despite his pleas, the Yakuza tie his girlfriend up and hooks her up with drugs, with him watching and being helpless to help her. The Yakuza then take turns sadistically raping and beating her.
      • Shortly after the guy says 'Let her go' referring to Ai, the scene returns to Satoh's bedroom where the Yakuza slashes the right side of her face with a tanto knife to show who's the boss, explaining why later her face is bandaged when she returns the ring to Ai. The scene then goes back to the lobby showing Ai running into the elevator scared. Miyuki, who was waiting for her, meets up with her after she gets out of the elevator. Seeing her terrified, Miyuki asks her what was wrong. Ai shakes her head saying everything was all right, it's just he wasn't home that's all. They then go to the young client's room.
      • The scene where the young client asks to be strangled is longer, showing Ai and Miyuki walking into his room being addressed as Mistress and Mistress Ai.
      • The masochism scene with Saki is longer.
    • Connections
      Featured in Interview with Ryu Murakami (2008)
    • Soundtracks
      Llegué Llegué / Guararey de Pastorita
      Performed by Los Van Van

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    FAQ16

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 30, 1993 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • Japan
    • Languages
      • Japanese
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Токийский декаданс
    • Filming locations
      • New York City, New York, USA
    • Production companies
      • Cinemabrain
      • Japan Video Distribution (JVD) Co. Ltd.
      • Melsat Inc.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $277,845
    • Gross worldwide
      • $277,845
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 52 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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