Sada (Eiko Matsuda), a maid, becomes obsessed with her employer, Kichizo (Tatsuya Fuji), after glimpsing him make love to his wife. All it takes is one brief encounter for Kichizo to feel the same passion for Sada. As their affair escalates, pushing the boundaries of ecstasy and fulfillment, the two lovers reach a shocking pinnacle of excess. Nagisa Oshima wrote and directed this controversial classic, inspired by true events in 1930s Japan.
I liked the basis for this movie but there just wasn't enough sex. Just kidding. This movie is so over the top it would be hilarious if it had a point. While the premise is interesting, it's erotic for the first 45 minutes or so. Then it becomes boring same ol' same ol' until the graphically horrific ending. Half erotic, half tiresome. All crazy.
- Dan the Engineer
Watch as two people meet and fall into some sort of self-propelling, codependent relationship, burning with the indescribable passion of a thousand suns. Watch as they slowly tear each other to pieces and wreck like a head-on train collision, shattering into a million pieces. In the Realm of the Senses is so very much not for everyone. It is entirely graphic with loads and loads of full-frontal nudity as the least of its pervy offenses. I've seen actual hardcore porn that seems tame in comparison to this film. I think it achieved most of its notoriety for its sex scenes rather than for its substance. Still, In The Realm of the Senses is emotionally powerful. Perhaps it is a little too resonant for my liking; it was almost painful to watch. While it's not as good as I had hoped, it was an interesting, albeit vaguely disturbing, take on the destructive capability of something resembling love.
- pterosaur