NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: 88 Films Blu-ray (March 2025): 88 Films have transferred Tatsumi Kumashiro's Woods are Wet to Blu-ray. It is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. The film itself - especially the first 1/3rd - is extremely dark. The film’s look evokes a gothic-tinged Japanese countryside aesthetic, juxtaposing the serene beauty of its rural setting with the visceral horror unfolding within the isolated inn. This deliberate contrast - between the inviting warmth of its visuals and the depravity of its content - creates a disorienting, almost hypnotic effect that amplifies the film’s thematic depth. Cinematography was by Yonezô Maeda (Seijun Suzuki's Pistol Opera.) The HD presentation is not very crisp - plenty of waxy softness and hard-to-discern visuals. The film employs a muted yet rich color palette that reflects the Taisho period’s blend of traditional Japanese and emerging Western influences. Interiors are dominated by earthy tones - deep browns of wooden beams, soft beiges of tatami mats, and the occasional splash of crimson from kimonos or blood - bathed in the flickering glow of candlelight and oil lamps. Exterior shots of the surrounding woods are shrouded in misty grays and greens, with diffused natural light filtering through trees, lending an ethereal, oppressive weight to the landscape - like a trap closing in. It looks acceptable on Blu-ray but far from stellar.

NOTE: We have added 34 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, 88 Films use a linear PCM dual-mono track (24-bit) in the original Japanese language. Woods are Wet sound design deepens the film’s unsettling atmosphere and complements its stark visual style. The ambient audio is where "Woods Are Wet" truly excels, crafting a tactile, oppressive environment that draws the viewer into the inn’s nightmarish world. The soundscape blends a minimalist score, raw ambient effects, and sparse dialogue to create a visceral, immersive experience that mirrors the narrative’s descent into depravity. Shinichi Haruno and Toru Ohe's score is sparse yet impactful, eschewing the lush or jazzy tones common in some Roman Porno films for a more dissonant, atmospheric approach. The music relies heavily on eerie, minimalist strings - often evoking the twang of a warped koto or shamisen - layered with low, resonant tones that hum beneath the surface like a distant threat. 88 Films offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'B' Blu-ray.

The 88 Films Blu-ray offers a new commentary by Jasper Sharp (Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Sex Cinema, The Midnight Eye Guide to New Japanese Film) and Lindsay Hallam (Screening the Marquis de Sade: Pleasure, Pain and the Transgressive Body in Film,) a scholar of transgressive film and the Marquis de Sade. Their discussion is engaging and illuminating, blending Sharp’s deep knowledge of Roman Porno’s evolution and Kumashiro’s career with Hallam’s expertise on de Sade’s "Justine," the film’s loose inspiration. They explore how Kumashiro adapts the novel’s themes of virtue and vice into a Taisho-era Japanese context, while dissecting the film’s gothic atmosphere and its place in Nikkatsu’s erotic output. The duo bounces off each other well, offering a mix of historical trivia (e.g., the film’s censorship woes, pulled from screens after three days) and analytical depth, making it rewarding for multiple listens. It’s a scholarly yet accessible track that adds significant value, especially for those new to the genre. Pleasure And Pain: Mio Hatokai on Woods Are Wet is a 10-minute, interview with this a Japanese film commentator, who provides a concise yet informative overview of the film’s background and qualities. Hatokai covers Kumashiro’s reputation as a leading Roman Porno director, the film’s controversial reception, and its stylistic strengths - such as its candlelit visuals and nihilistic tone. Her perspective offers a Japanese cultural lens, possibly explaining nuances like the Taisho setting or the film’s place in the erotic grotesque tradition. Lastly is a stills gallery and a trailer.

Tatsumi Kumashiro's Woods are Wet unfolds as a grim, Taisho-era (1912–1926) parable that subverts the traditional damsel-in-distress trope. The story centers on Sachiko (Hiroko Isayama), a young woman on the run after being falsely accused of murder by her lover’s wife. The film is a meditation on power, pleasure, and the human capacity for cruelty, filtered through a distinctly Japanese lens. The cast delivers performances that balance restraint and excess, fitting the film’s tonal tightrope. I wasn't enamored with Woods are Wet although the 88 Films Blu-ray with its excellent commentary and interview do shed some light on this wayward Nikkatsu oddity. To each his own.

Gary Tooze