Legends of the Poisonous Seductress #1: Female Demon Ohyaku

(aka 'Yôen dokufuden hannya no ohyaku' or 'Ohyaku: The Female Demon' or 'Legends of the Poisonous Seductress #1: Female Demon Ohyaku')

Directed by Yoshihiro Ishikawa
Japan 1968

Okyaku's hatred burns bright--the lady with the demon tattoo will have her vengeance!

The stunning Junko Miyazono stars in the first entry of the LEGENDS OF THE POISONOUS SEDUCTRESS series, FEMALE DEMON OHYAKU, as a quiet actress wrongly sent to prison and pushed by her tormentors to the point of no return.

With a demon tattoo splayed across her back and a sword in her hand, she embarks on a crusade of vengeance against all those who have wronged her, laying waste to man and woman alike in her quest for bloody retribution.

Featuring tattooing, beheadings, and merciless torture, "Ohyaku" is a gruesome Pinky Violence classic that proved highly influential on later series of sexy action films from Toei Studios in the 1970s.

Poster

Theatrical Release: July, 1968 - Tokyo

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DVD Review: Ryko Distribution Partners - Region 0 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Ryko Distribution Partners - Region 0 - NTSC
Runtime	1:29:33
Video	2.35:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 9.0 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Ryko Distribution Partners Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 2.35:1 Edition Details: • Audio commentary by Japanese film expert Chris Desjardins (author of *Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film*) • trailers DVD Release Date: November 13th, 2007 Transparent Keep Case Chapters: 18

Comments:

I decided on a whim to give this a whirl and I'm glad - it's far better than I was anticipating It has enough of the cheapish camp to give it charm and is still a fairly professionally made film. I'm pleasantly surprised by my enjoyment of this work.

The DVD sports a strong, fully restored anamorphic widescreen transfer mastered in high-definition from Toei's original vault elements. Contrast is a shade light at times but detail has some remarkable moments - overall this is an excellent progressive transfer on a dual-layered disc. It offers 2.0 mono Japanese language with newly-translated, removable English subtitles. The print is fairly clean and I have no complaints with the image quality.

Supplements include an audio commentary by Japanese film expert Chris Desjardins (author of Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film). He appears to know his stuff although he has a tendency to meander - his voice is weak for a commentarist. As a novice I did enjoy listening but suspect many may not. At least the option is there and I appreciate the effort. There are also trailers for all three segments of the Poisonous Seductress saga and some liner notes (also by Chris D.) with the above poster.

This is far from classic Japanese cinema but it has a cool niche following that I may be joining by purchasing the other two in this series. I wasn't expecting to get a lot out of this film but the kitschy allure is there - definitely. If you have any remote inkling into this 'genre' - I'd like to encourage you to visit Ohyaku: The Female Demon.