Cinematic sexualities: The two faces of Abe Sada in Japanese ‘poruno’ film

Abstract

Abe Sada shocked and even delighted Japan when she was apprehended on 21 May 1936 for the murder and post-mortem severing of her lover’s genitalia. The incident, widely reported for months after the event, engaged people usually not preoccupied with sexual issues, in discussions of sexual desire. Exactly 40 years later, the Abe Sada incident reignited fervor in the media due to the scandal surrounding the Ōshima Nagisa film, Ai no Koriida (Empire of the Senses)(1976), which made newspaper headlines around the world. While some people loved the film, others attacked it on the basis that it contained nothing but sex scenes from beginning to end. It disturbed a lull in international attention to Japanese film.