Entrails of A Virgin

Not what I expected its OK

...I can't believe I just complained about that?Once in awhile, you would encounter a film that you definitely will have the reaction not to like, but for some unexplainable reason, you see the film for what it's supposed to be and you end up being bewildered as to why a film would seem quite enjoyable. Such is the case with ENTRAILS OF A VIRGIN (1986, aka. Shojo no harawata), I know it's the type of flick that most people would deem as garbage but then again, one man's garbage is another's treasure. For me, the film had a lot of guts; this film does have a lot of "intestinal fortitude" to pull this off.Three alluring models; Kei (Megumi Kawashima), Rei (Saeko Kizuki) and Kazuyo (Naomi Hagio) have just completed a photo session with photographer, Asaoka (Daiki Kato). They are accompanied by the producer, Itomura (Osamu Tsuruoka) and Asaoka's assistant Tachikawa (Hideki Takahashi). They get lost in the woods during a very dense fog and decide to spend the night in a deserted cabin (or is it a house?). A killer mud monster decides to stalk the group and make the women his sex slaves.I really cannot say if Kazuo "Gaira" Komizu's gory thriller intended to explore the mythologies of "things that go bump in the night" or if he wanted to make a truly exploitive film. I have a hard time classifying this film as a piece of Japanese "pink" horror. I know that films such as this are meant to have a simple storyline, as an excuse for Japanese women to show their stuff. The film is definitely exploitive, there is a lot of graphic sex and nudity on display but it just didn't provide the necessary scares to really provide the viewer with pure mindless fun. As with most Japanese films during this time, the naked crotch areas have been fogged so the viewer cannot have a clear view, but the actors treat themselves to some very excessive spooning. This is a film made in the 80's so expect the 80's hairdos and outfits.The film definitely follows all the formulas of people stuck in the woods, while the men take advantage of the women, they force themselves on them and despite the women's protestations, they get degraded anyway. Male superiority over women in show business is explored and director Gaira pulled all the stops to get his point across. There really is nothing original here, Gaira just seemed to revel in the fact that he is displaying a lot of sleazy and exploitive sex onscreen. Yes, the sex scenes are more graphic than the ones on late night cable and walks the thin line between softcore and hardcore porn.The characters themselves are unlikable. The men are manipulative beasts and the women, well, I'm not really quite certain as to why they do let these things happen to them. I couldn't really feel any sympathy because the women are really underdeveloped. "Unpleasant folks have unpleasant experiences" may well be the film's major selling point. I do think that the male characters got what they deserved.Now, the death scenes aren't quite as inventive as I would've wished them to be. Truth be told, if there was more blood and gore than the sex and nudity, then the film would have been a lot more fun. The "Mud Man" looked like a cross between a cannibal and a sex-crazed psychopath. Gaira exaggerates some scenes as with the antagonist's manly attributes and shadows are used to give the viewer an idea as to what is going on. The director obviously wanted to add some `artistic' visuals when it came to gore, and it is quite funny in its own way.There are quite a number of scenes that are full of audacity, and some scenes may prove pointless. The gore and blood looked quite campy but there is a certain amount of brilliance hidden in the film somewhere. I am sure U.S. filmmakers have thought about it but only the Japanese have the guts to follow through their ideas. The scene where Kazuyo (Naomi Hagio, the sexiest of the three) goes down on the mud man while she touches herself with a severed hand exhibits brilliance (?) as well as balls to the wall sleazy exploitation.Those who are expecting an ultra-blood-soaked affair may be a little disappointed. True, if it could have used MORE GORE than sex (I can't believe I said that) but this film further cements the idea that Japanese filmmakers may know more about exploitation than anyone else. If you look at it from a viewpoint that the director almost went to the limits of exploitation then you may be impressed. I am rather curious as to how he manages to top this film with "Entrails of a Beautiful Woman", I've read that the sequel even goes further. Me, personally, I thought the live action "La Blue Girl" exhibited more discipline. (Does anyone want me to review that?)Overall, this will definitely make a mark in the annals of Asian Cult Cinema. The film is definitely geared towards the fans of slasher/gore/sex films. The idea of a mud man walking around raping and killing women seemed a little nihilistic but it will hold your interest, in a bizarre way. The film is sleazy, sexy and gory; gorehounds have a reason to rejoice.This is one movie I can't really say I'd recommend but it's worth a look for fans of Japanese cinema. Proceed with caution. [3- Stars]For a real contrasting opinion, see amazon friend Zack Davisson's great review.

Great stuff

So, if I told you that this movie had a scene with a woman sucking off a monster while simultaneously masturbating herself with a disembodied hand, would that make you pop the DVD into the player, or throw it across the room? Because that is the kind of question you have to ask yourself before buying "Entrails of a Virgin" ("Shojo no harawata").Firmly in the Erotic/Grotesque genre of Japanese film, this is the directorial debut of Kazuo 'Gaira' Komizu (writer of Go, Go Second Time Virgin). Everything about this flick screams "the 80's", from the cheesy hairdos to the cheesier synthesizer music reminiscent of every sex/slasher film popular at the time. This film once had an infamous reputation amongst Japanese horror fans, both for it's rarity as well as for pushing the boundaries in gore and sex far beyond previous levels. However, since then the boundaries have been pushed so far that much of "Entrails of a Virgin" comes off as tame.The story is the basic "cabin in the woods" motif. Three guys, three girls, it's a foggy and dangerous drive and they all decide to stop by a deserted house in the woods to pass the night. Everyone pairs off and the pants come off. Enter the monster.For a Japanese pink film, "Entrails of a Virgin" does push some serious boundaries on sex and nudity. Far more than the occasional glimpse of T&A, all the gals here get very, very naked and look good doing so. Kizuki Saeko (Angel Guts), Hagio Naomi ("Wife Collector") and Kawashima Megumi (Onimusha 3 of all things...) all manage to lose everything they have, get raped by man and monster alike, and squeak as only Japanese actresses can in a pink film. There were a few shocking shots, stuff that I haven't seen in any other pink film, and the director clearly wanted to walk that fine line between soft and hardcore.The gore scenes where a little more disappointing. The director obviously didn't have the budget or skills to make a genuinely sticky mess of things, but he gave it a good try. There are a lot of intercut shots of slabs of meat getting pounded that work effectively but are still somewhat of a cop-out. The giant mud-man monster elicits a giggle rather than a scare, but I think they did their best with what they had to work with.Personally, cheese aside I enjoyed this flick a lot. It is about on the same level as Bloodsucking Freaks, an oddity with a few over-the-top scenes that deserves its cult status. Japanese films got gorier, starting with later flicks like Evil Dead Trap, but they rarely hit the sex boundaries like this again unless they went full hardcore. It would be easy to find a lot of flaws with this flick, but just as easy to have a good time.The DVD is really well done, with fantastic audio and visual cleanness. There is an interview with the director, which is continued on the sequel Entrails of a Beautiful Woman. Also included is an essay on why Japanese films "fog" the genitals of actors, even when it is obviously a sex film. Very cool and informative for first timers into the pink film genre.

The plot's simple, anything but unique, cliché, and what-not; (minor spoiler possibility) a photo crew ends up in a house in the woods (for what reason? I don't know, really). On the way there they hit some thing, which immediately disappeared again though. In any case, being stuck in the house, some monster (the thing) with a giant phallus comes and terrorizes them.Gorn? Hell yeah. Amusing? Moderately. I personally liked the first entry in the series, Guts Of A Beauty, better. However, that doesn't mean this one's bad. Or well, it's bad, but it's still fun, too. There's no real story, no development, some cliché characters, copious amounts of rape, a swamp thing with a giant phallus, and a necrophiliac girl. Altogether, that makes for some slightly above average 70+ minutes.The special effects are very poorly done though; if you have seen the cover art and thought, "Oh my, now that looks retarded", this is a shot from an actual scene in the flick (referring to the Japan Shock edition!). There's some more badly done scenes, although the scenes with the necrophiliac girl are excecuted generally nice and are highly amusing.In the end, I'd say recommended if you like gorn, but the first entry in the series, Guts Of A Beauty, 'd be a better choice.mos says:Scares? -20/10Gore? 6/10Size of that giant phallus? 10"/10Fun factor? 6/10Guts Of A Virgin? Well.

As if pearl harbor wasn't enough of an assault on America Japan sends us entrails of a virgin. A senseless waste of time and money. Very disappointed at the entire film.

Interresting