For as much as people decry the slightest signs of inappropriate sexual imagery, millions of those same people still happily indulge in rape fantasies. It's a very different thing from true rape, existing in a fantasy world wherein stimulating surprise and loss of control are carefully arranged in a perfect cocktail of titillation, the sort of thing that doesn't tend to happen by accident. A great example is 1973's
Belladonna of Sadness (哀しみのベラドンナ), an anime film inspired by an 1863 French book about witchcraft. An innocent young woman called Jeanne gradually gives her heart to Satan after experiencing a series of sexual assaults sanctified by societal norms. But the world presented by the film is so narrow, so starkly composed of simplistically vicious or virtuous characters, it can only be appreciated on the level of decadent fantasy. This makes an attempt, late in the film, to make a real political statement absurdly misplaced but there's still a tremendous amount to admire about it.
The artwork is fantastic. The film clearly had a very low budget, even for '70s anime, and many scenes are simply still images with audio only dialogue. But the animators are strategically deployed for some of the most fascinatingly crafted abstractions of orgasm I've ever seen.
When Jeanne (Aiko Nagayama) is first taken to the castle and gang raped by the lord (Masaya Takahashi) and his court, we see her whole body seemingly split down the centre to turn into bright red bats that flutter away.
When she decides to give herself to the Devil (none other than Tatsuya Nakadai!), we see her wrap her legs around the giant, throbbing red man with a distinctive cap.
So she becomes a witch and incites the whole town to uncontrolled lust. This is visually represented by a vast, pulsating ring of hair created by that of all the women in the town, and tangled in the hair are the townspeople, phasing in and out of animal forms as they undulate in pairs or with objects.
The incidents that form Jeanne's misfortunes become increasingly unlikely. First she's an innocent maiden who falls prey to
primae nocta, then she inexplicably becomes a money lender. She's wealthy and hated but for some reason doesn't think to hire bodyguards so she's unprepared when the townsfolk tear all her clothes off.
Despite the fact that this fascinating, full length dream sequence seems to present its impression of violence entirely to titillate, it ends with a random statement about how Jeanne's sacrifice somehow led to the French Revolution. Considering some of the political events of the past seven years in America, I do wonder if some people take fantasies like this very, very seriously. But fortunately it doesn't distract me from appreciating brilliant artistry.
Belladonna of Sadness is available on The Criterion Channel.
Twitter Sonnet #1461
Important turtles dwell beneath the down.
Entire doors were dashed for dizzy wrath.
Elected clubs beheld the sequined gown.
Relentless hands create the songless path.
Dessert was second string to sweets to-night.
Delicious cake was cheese or choc'late loaf.
Arranging grains of sugar makes it right.
When choosing single cards just gather both.
Replacing Zs with S condemns surprise.
Resourceful circles turn around apace.
Revealing masks reject the name "disguise".
Reporting deems the heart a dry disgrace.
To-morrow strolls along the crooked street.
To touch the wall's to feel a heavy beat.
