| Vintage Pulp | Feb 2 2021 |
It's a bold color but in samurai movies everyone who's anyone wears it.
The above poster was made for the samurai thriller Bôhachi bushidô: Sa burai, known in English as Bohachi Bushido - The Villain. Gorô Ibuki plays a mid-1600s samurai named Kyushi-Issho who goes to work for a gang called the Bohachi that kidnap women from across Japan to sell them into sexual slavery. This gang is uniquely cruel, which suits Kyushi-Issho just fine. He's cruel too. He chops off numerous arms and heads, and generally paints walls red wherever he goes. Enter Reiko Ike, one of the stars of Toei Company's pinky violence genre, as Monkmatsu, who procures women for the gang. When she meets the samurai sparks fly, but she learns that Kyushi-Issho isn't exactly all there.
Their gang is soon arrayed against a rival group, and the tensions come to a frothy head. The conflict is resolved via a blood drenched final battle—a common motif in these films, the same way a final duel is standard in so many American westerns. The nihilistic Kyushi-Issho is fond of saying that to live is hell, yet death is also hell. Somehow, though, he always finds the will make a choice between giving up and going on. For life may be hell, but better the hell you know. Bôhachi bushidô: Sa burai is blades, blood, and boobs done with style, well worth a watch. It premiered in Japan today in 1974.
You know what the ceiling needs? A splash of red.
You know what that wall needs? A splash of red.
You know what her make-up needed? A splash of red.
I like red. I shall paint the entire house this color.
Yes. Just as I envisioned.
Why stop inside the house? When this woman is torn in half she'll paint the entire yard red.And now, Reiko and Co.
And lastly, the standard promo poster, as opposed to tateken size at top.
JapanToei CompanyBôhachi bushidô: Sa burai忘八武士道 さ無頼Bohachi Bushido - The VillainGorô IbukiReiko Ikeposter artcinemapinkunuditymovie review
| Intl. Notebook | Oct 27 2020 |
They don't make happy music but it'll stick with you for a long time.
Above, a Toei Company promo photo for Zenka onna: koroshi-bushi, aka Criminal Woman: Killing Melody, featuring one of the great girl gangs of pinku cinema—comprising, counterclockwise from upper right, Reiko Ike, Miki Sugimoto, Masami Soda, Chiyoko Kazama, and Yumiko Katayama. We have some beautiful material on this flick, here, here, and here. It premiered today in 1973.
JapanToei CompanyZenka onna: koroshi-bushiCriminal Woman: Killing Melody前科おんな 殺し節Reiko Ike池玲子Miki Sugimoto杉本美樹Yumiko Katayama片山由美子Chiyoko Kazama風間千代子Masami Soda宗田政美pinkupinky violencecinema
| Vintage Pulp | May 21 2020 |
That whole prison rehabilitation thing doesn't seem to be working.
Well, this completes the collection of posters we have for Zeroka no onna: Akai wappa, aka Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs, starring Miki Sugimoto as a vigilante cop released from prison to take on a gang of kidnappers. We've shown you the limited edition poster panted by Toru Shinohara, and the tateken sized promo. This is the standard sized poster and finishes up all the promo material we have on this iconic film. Don't worry, though. We have more on Sugimoto and even some rare promo images of her never before seen online. We'll get to those later.
JapanToei CompanyZeroka no onna: Akai wappaZero Woman: Red HandcuffsMiki Sugimotopinkupinky violenceposter artcinema
| Vintage Pulp | May 2 2020 |
Katayama finds herself with too much skin in the game.
Above you see two posters for the Japanese movie Tokugawa irezumi-shi: Seme jigoku, which is known in English as Inferno of Torture, and, occasionally, Hell's Tattooers. We aren't going to get too deeply into the film. It's where Japanese cinema delves into bondage and tattoo fetish layered with gore, and deals with two Edo-era master tattooists who play out a bitter rivalry on the skin of Yumiko Katayama, as well as other unfortunates. If you can tolerate the frontloaded blood and torture, the latter two thirds of the movie may be worth watching for the tattoos, which verge on magical rather than merely ornate. The set design and Teruo Ishii's direction are good too. The tateken sized promo at top is rare, if not even nonexistent online until this very moment, so we thought we'd share it. Tokugawa irezumi-shi: Seme jigoku premiered in Japan today in 1969. Below you see Katayama in a nice pose, untattooed.
JapanToei CompanyTokugawa irezumi-shi: Seme jigokuInferno of TortureHell's TattooersTeruo YoshidaMasumi TachibanaYumiko KatayamaTeruo Ishiiiposter artcinemasexploitationnudity
| Vintage Pulp | Mar 1 2020 |
They're planning to make a sizable withdrawal.
Above is an alternate poster for the bank heist flick Suke Yakuza, aka Female Yakuza Convict, which premiered in Japan today in 1974 and starred Reiko Ike and Yoko Horikoshi. We still haven't tracked down the movie, and since we know of no other promos than the four—including this one—we've now shared, if we ever do find this we won't be able to write about it because we'll have no art to pair with a write-up. Unless, of course, there's yet a fifth poster out there. But we doubt it. So consider this rare horizontally oriented version the last you'll hear from us about this film.
JapanToei CompanySuke Yakuza女囚やくざFemale Yakuza ConvictReiko IkeYoko Horikoshiposter artcinemapinkupinky violence
| Vintage Pulp | Jan 23 2020 |
Cold steel is fine but hot lead is a hell of a lot more efficient.
This poster was made for the classic Tomisaburô Wakayama gangster flick Kapone no shatei yamato damashi, known in English as A Boss with the Samurai Spirit. It's the third one we've found for the movie, and as you already know from our previous posts, these round promos are rare. They were made only by Toei Company, as far as we know, and only for a few years during the late 1960s and early ’70s. We have others we'll get to later. For now, see two more examples here and here, and a third in this group. Also, you can see the other two Kapone posters here and here.
JapanToei CompanyKapone no shatei yamato damashiカポネの舎弟 やまと魂A Boss with the Samurai SpiritCapone's Younger Brother: Heart and SpeculationTomisaburô Wakayamaposter artcinema
| Vintage Pulp | Nov 17 2019 |
New main ingredient, same old Female Prisoner Scorpion.
We've already shared two posters for Yumi Takigawa's women-in-prison pinky violence flick Shin joshuu sasori: 701-gô, aka New Female Prisoner Scorpion: 701, which premiered today in 1976. Above is the slightly different tateken sized poster, added here for the sake of completeness. The film is a reboot of the original Female Prisoner Scorpion series starring Meiko Kaji, and most consider it to be of lesser quality than the first four films, but quality is a relative term in pinku. Some would say all the films are bad. Not us. But some would say that. Bonus material: a Yumi promo image below. And you can see the other posters here and here.
JapanToei CompanyShin joshuu sasori: 701-gôNew Female Prisoner Scorpion: 701Yumi Takigawa多岐川裕美Meiko Kajiposter artcinemasexploitationpinkupinky violence
| Vintage Pulp | Oct 27 2019 |
What music do you want played at your funeral?
The classic pinku revenge tale Zenka onna: koroshi-bushi, aka Criminal Woman: Killing Melody had three incredible posters, and with the sharing of this one we've completed the trifecta. This is a rare two-piece bo-ekibari, similar to what in the U.S. is sometimes called a billboard poster. You'll see it nowhere else online. At least not until it's taken from here. The movie starred icons Reiko Ike and Miki Sugimoto as deadly rivals, was perfectly directed by Atsushi Mihori, and premiered in Japan today in 1973. See the other two posters for this here and here.
JapanToei CompanyZenka onna: koroshi-bushiCriminal Woman: Killing MelodyReiko IkeMiki SugimotoAtsushi Mihorisexploitationposter artcinemapinkupinky violence
| Vintage Pulp | Sep 25 2019 |
Yamauchi and Shibata are back for an encore.
Several years ago we shared a rare tateken sized poster for Bankaku Rokku, aka Bankaku Rock, aka Ranking Boss Rock, and today, above, we're circling back to the film with the hansai sized poster, which we usually just call standard sized. We didn't share this in the earlier post because we didn't have it then. It just wasn't available at the time. That omission is now rectified. Something else that wasn't available back then was the movie. Well, we found that too. Our efforts are unceasing.
Bankaku Rokku is a juvie delinquent pinky violence flick in which the Akabane 100 Club and Ikebukuro Cavalry battle for supremacy. Emiko Yamauchi plays Yukiko, the “bankaku,” or chief bodyguard of the Akabane 100. When she's released from reform school she decides to settle an old score with the Cavalry gang's leader Taka, played by Etsuko Shibata. But Yukiko's revenge gets complicated when she's accused of a murder that was actually the work of Johuku Clan, a male gang of pimps and thieves.
This flick is all alienation and disaffection. When the police come looking for Yukiko her authoritarian father even urges them to give her the death penalty. Will Yukiko dodge the cops and get her sweet revenge? It wouldn't be pinky violence if she didn't at least get the chance. Broken bottles, supersharp scissors, and razor blades are the order of the day, along with numerous boobs and climactic bloodspray. There may not be much of a point to it all, but for pinky violence fans it should hit the spot. Bankaku Rokku premiered in Japan today in 1973.
JapanToei CompanyBankaku Rokku番格ロックBankaku RockRanking Boss RockEmiko YamauchiEtsuko Shibatapinkupinky violenceposter artcinemamovie review
| Vintage Pulp | Jun 19 2019 |
Sony Chiba battles the mob in a breakout performance.
How many movies did Sonny Chiba appear in? Like two-hundred? It must be close to that. These posters were made to promote his actioner Dasso yugi, known internationally as Escape Game, or alternatively as Jail Breakers. Chiba plays a career criminal who breaks out of the joint and ends up joining a cartel that specializes in prison breaks. They're “escape coordinators.” It's a great set-up for a flick. However, Chiba fans who haven't seen this should be forewarned that he's no martial arts master here. He's just a regular ex-con trying to make a fast yen in the face of long odds. It's a pretty good film, with nice twists, fun stunts, a cool soundtrack, and, in Chiba, one of the most bankable stars of ’70s Japanese cinema. And while the movie doesn't feature his trademark martial arts, it does feature Haruko Hanibuchi in a co-starring role, and she's an art form all her own. We'll show you what we mean a bit later. Dasso yugi premiered in Japan today in 1976.
JapanToei CompanyDasso yugiJail BreakersEscape GameSonny ChibaShin'ichi ChibaHaruko Wanibuchiposter artcinemamovie review
