With an arresting mix of eroticism and horror, Oshima plunges the viewer into a nightmarish tale of guilt and retribution in Empire of Passion (Ai no borei). Set in a Japanese village at the end of the nineteenth century, the film details the emotional and physical downfall of a married woman (Kazuko Yoshiyuki) and her younger lover (Tatsuya Fuji) following their decision to murder her husband and dump his body in a well. Empire of Passion was Oshima’s only true kaidan (Japanese ghost story), and the film, a savage, unrelenting experience, earned him the best director award at the Cannes Film Festival.
- NTSC Region 1
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer
- New video essay by film historian and critic Catherine Russell
- New interview with actors Kazuo Yoshiyuki and Tatsuya Fuji
- An interview program from 2003 featuring production consultant Koji Wakamatsu and assistant directors Yusuke Narita and Yoici Sai
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