Product Details

• Actors: Yumi Takigawa, Emiko Yamauchi, Yayoi Watanabe, Ryouko Ima, Harumi Tajima
• Directors: Noribumi Suzuki
• Writers: Noribumi Suzuki, Masahiro Kakefuda
• Format: Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: Japanese
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Cult Epics
• DVD Release Date: August 30, 2005
• Run Time: 91 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000AA4F9W
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #108,742 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "School of the Holy Beast" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Studio: Wea-des Moines Video Release Date: 08/30/2005 Run time: 94 minutes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Japanese Nunsploitation, November 11, 2005

By 

GialloFan (OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: School of the Holy Beast (DVD)

A wonderful film - as amazing as Female Prisoner 701 - fantastic visuals - fantastic music - only the Japanese can make such trash with such style. Highly recommended!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nasty Nuns of Nippon, July 13, 2008

By 

Franco Jesse (Pittsburgh, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: School of the Holy Beast (DVD)

I sat down to view this expecting a typical nunsploitation flick. Sure there is some whipping, torture, lesbianism and even some mention of Satan. But this widescreen, uncut version by Cult Epics is an absorbing and gripping story of demons that lurk within the hearts and minds of humans, not beasts of the holy or unholy kind. Medieval Catholicism mixes with Japanese themes of family, honor and revenge to produce a hot mess that is beautifully presented and mesmerizingly performed. Tumi Takigawa stars as Maya, a young woman who "infiltrates" a convent to discern the truth about her biological mother, a nun who died after giving birth to Maya 18 years before. She encounters greed, lust, subterfuge, hatred, betrayal, corruption, violence and many other vices while navigating the curious caste system of the abbey that pits "choir nuns" against "assistant nuns". Although sometimes over-the-top in its depiction of religious beliefs, it fascinates nonetheless.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stylish, beautifully shot Asian take on Nunsploitation, March 7, 2010

By 

Peter Cook "Peter Cook" (Auckland, NEW ZEALAND) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: School of the Holy Beast (DVD)

After hearing much about this infamous picture over the years I finally obtained a copy and was pleasantly surprised on several levels - one it's nowhere near as controversial in content than some might suggest. The exploitation elements are there but almost tastefully presented - certainly far more so than in dozens of other Japanese 'Pink' or exploitation films of that period which were frequently way over the top in sadism and often unpleasant torture type scenarios.

"School of the Holy Beast" is a big budget film - beautifully photographed and top drawer in all departments - something this genre isn't always known for (*though Jess Franco's "Love Letters from a Portuguese Nun" would fit into that evaluation I believe). The cast are headed by the stunningly attractive and capable Yumi Takagawa in her first film. Among the extras on the DVD is a wonderfully frank and funny interview with the still gorgeous and utterly charming Takagawa where she explains her run ins with the director over nude scenes she hadn't been made aware of in the script. This video interview is really worth the price of admission alone as she is so utterly bemused that this film above all her other serious achievements later on is held up as her shining piece. A really sweet and delightful lady.

Definitely a must for fans of Jap-sploitation and such - with a lovely anamorphic transfer that nicely captures all of the great art direction and photographic compositions well. And hey, the title alone is fantastic and one of my all time favourite film titles - as is the ad art. A great show of it's genre.