Customer Reviews

Sada

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Sada, based on the life of Sada Abe, is entirely different in character from In The Realm Of The Senses (I.T.R.O.T.S., if you will), and the two films approach every aspect of the story differently. Unlike I.T.R.O.T.S., Sada is a highly surreal film in which the tragic life of Sada Abe is explored, though not without humor (including a scene or two reminiscent of an old Keystone Cops skit) and basically without the volumes of nudity that I.T.R.O.T.S. contains. It might be said that in contrast to I.T.R.O.T.S., which I found tedious due to its dull plot and extensive focus on obsessive sexuality (if I want porn, I'll rent the real stuff, thank you) Sada is a film which approaches the character of Sada Abe with as much interest in her emotional obsession with being loved and her reaction to being abused as with her sexual obsession. Despite the surreal nature of the film, it provides a more rounded picture of and does a better job of humanizing Sada Abe than I.T.R.O.T.S. did, and the film style itself manages to entertain the viewer while a tragedy takes place on screen before them. A difficult film to explain, it is highly worth seeing, particularly for anyone interested in Asian cinema, unusual film styles, or just the somewhat compelling story of Sada Abe herself.

This is one of two Japanese films I've seen about Aba Sada, who murdered her lover, castrated him and was arrested a few days later with his genitals still in her possession. The crime was understandably notorious in Japan and Sada herself became a sort of celebrity. Her punishment was rather mild, considering the nature of the crime, but there were mitigating circumstances. The other film is In the Realm of the Senses. The latter is probably superior purely as cinema and as drama, but Sada is also interesting and provides more information about Sada and her crime. The guality of the video in the case of "Sada" is not as good as the Criterion Collection print of "Realm of the Senses". The latter is controversial for a good deal of very explicit sex, some not even simulated. "Sada" is not very explicit at all, and implies a good deal more than it shows. On the other hand, Empire of the Senses is really beautifully photographed and very carefully directed, and has a power lacking in the less explicit Sada, meaning that the film conveys a strong sense of tragedy and doom, while "Sada" is almost too light in tone for the subject.

Forget that this is another entry in the dramatization of Sada Abe's life and crime of killing her lover and cutting off his man-parts, most infamously portrayed in the sexually explicit In the Realm of the Senses, and ignore all the commentary that molds the story into a historical and social context for your academic pleasure, and never mind that these kinds of stories always start off with the girl being raped as a teenager. All those things involve too much thinking. Just kick back and enjoy this as another odd but fairly well-executed film by director Nobuhiko Obayashi.

The first things you'll notice about the film are the narrative and filmic techniques used by Obayashi. Characters break the Fourth Wall; there's a mix of black & white and color photography which is interesting and useful some times and random at others; some jump-cut editing use is mostly abandoned after the first act; the costuming, both traditional and modern, is gorgeous; there's a fabulous stop-motion sequence in the middle that starts with Sada reading a book while her lover sits near her having a snack, they do the hanky-panky and then resume their initial activities, and there are several moments of Keystone Kops style comedy. After that you should find it to be a fascinating character study of a strong and intelligent woman.

Hitomi Kuroki is amazing as Sada. Her characterization remains a constant as she effortlessly transitions through the varied styles of presentation Obayashi employs. She is always elegant, beautiful, sensuous, and in control. She is also very genuine, which comes off as quite sexy. (For the curious, there is zero nudity in this version of the story, not even a glimpse of Sada's notoriously cute butt. The closest we get, in a brilliant directorial move, is an odd-angled, extreme close-up of her fully kimonoed posterior. There are lots of bare shoulders and legs and several sex scenes but they are mostly played either artfully or comically.)

Sada may serve it's nominal content respectfully and respectably but it comes off so much more as a film than a biography that if it's approached with an educational curiosity its style may frustrate. Watch it for the whimsical stylings of the director and the lovely and remarkable performance of Hitomi Kuroki.

Whereas "In the Realm of Senses" is hardcore pornography masquerading as a feature film and features lots of explicit sexual acts, "Sada" sits square at the other end of the content spectrum: it has zero nudity (not even Sada's supposedly cute behind!), but is rather highly stylized, almost like a Broadway musical (except it has no singing or dancing). Some of the scenes are even comic, like the time when Sada works as a prostitute and is visited by her godbrother. There's liberal use of vibrant colors, very unlike the muted hues in "In the Realm of the Senses". In other words, this film can be no more different from its 1970s inspiration in content or style.

Whereas "In the Realm of Senses" presents ABE Sada (Sada is her firstname) as a nymphomaniac who, in her thirst for more and more sex, kills her lover and cuts out his member, "Sada" depicts her more as a maiden who loses her innocence under dubious circumstances (raped or consensual?) and is then forced by the cultural environment into prostitution, who eventually meets a man she desires. Compared to the other film, "Sada" is not convincing as to why Sada kills her lover. Things are just too "peaceful" and "quiet" in this film. "In the Realm of Senses" shocks you with its pornographic scenes and the intensity of the acting on the part of the actress (who's, BTW, not as pretty as the actress in "Sada", in the humble opinion of yours truly, but actually sexier in a very nymph way); anyone watching that film will never forget it. "Sada," in its 130-minute glory, is too lighthearted yet also too boring. It tries too hard to be a stylized film rather than a film that tells a story, and ends up being something I'll probably forget soon. If you are a film student or an art buff, you might like this better. If you are a staight guy and regardless of your artistic taste, you'll probably like "In the Realm of the Senses" better.

Apparently ABE Sada did exist as a real person and did cut out her lover's member after strangling him. Shockingly, she received only six years of prison sentence for her sadistic murder. I hope my significant other doesn't get inspired by this!