| 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 police 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 | Mar 8 2019 |
A step by step guide to being a total badass.
This incredibly cool collectible poster was made to promote Wakai kizoku-tachi: 13-kaidan no Maki, aka 13 Steps of Maki: The Young Aristocrats, which is more girl gang goodness from the schlockmeisters at Toei Company. Etsuko Shihomi (sometimes spelled Shiomi) plays Maki of the 13 Steps, leader of the Stray Cats, a group of very tough, martial arts trained femi-delinquents. Maki and the gang bury an arrogant one percenter up to her neck on a beach in retaliation for a traffic related insult, which is all good fun, but the victim is Takako, daughter of the powerful, yakuza connected owner of Ebihara Tourism. Once she digs herself out of the sand she retaliates. This in turn brings re-retaliation from the Cats, which brings re-re-retaliation from Takako, and pretty soon things are well out of control.
The movie is based on an Ikki Kajiwara/Masaaki Satô comic, and director Makoto Naitô uses some amazing comic book style, multi-character framing, as seen in our screen grabs below. This is top notch work from Toei's pinky violence line, about as fun as a Japanese actioner gets. And in supporting roles you'll encounter Sonny Chiba, Meika Seri, and Yûko Kanô. Watching movies like this almost makes up for all the Nikkatsu roman porno misfires we slog through. Almost. Etsuko Shihomi is considered a bit of a film icon in Asia because her martial arts skills were real, and she appeared in so many movies. We have numerous posters of hers to share later and they're even more amazing than this one. Wakai kizoku-tachi: 13-kaidan no Maki premiered in Japan today in 1975.
Step one is here, on the bottom of my platform boot. Have a close look.
Step two is don't put your face where people tell you. We'll get to step three after you heal.JapanToei CompanyWakai kizoku-tachi: 13-kaidan no Maki若い貴族たち 13階段のマキ13 Steps of Maki: The Young AristocratsMakoto NaitôEtsuko ShihomiShin'ichi ChibaSonny ChibaIkki KajiwaraMasaaki SatôMeika SeriYûko Kanôposter artcinemapinkupinky violencecinemamovie review
| Vintage Pulp | Jan 4 2019 |
Kanô and company are still Crazy after all these years.
Today's deep dive into the pinku pile has produced this two panel promo for Sukeban: Tamatsuki asobi, aka Girl Boss: Crazy Ball Game, which starred Yûko Kanô and premiered today in 1974. Not every pinku movie had these types of posters but we've acquired quite a few. We'd upload others, but we don't know what films some of them are for. We'll get around to sharing them anyway, though.
Looking below, you'll see we've grabbed some promo photos. These came from an online auction. The last panel shows Yûko Kanô's co-stars Ritsuko Fujiyama, Emi Jô, Harumi Tajima, Rie Saotome, and Ryôko Ema having some wild and watery fun. Sukeban: Tamatsuki asobi has it all—violence, sex, violence, Yakuza, violence, and more. You can read a bit more about it at our write-up from some years ago, located at this link.
JapanSukeban: Tamatsuki asobiGirl Boss: Crazy Ball GameYûko Kanô叶優子Ritsuko FujiyamaEmi JôHarumi TajimaRie SaotomeRyôko EmaJun Aidanuditypinky violencepinkuposter artcinema
| Vintage Pulp | Dec 30 2018 |
When Meiko comes 'round trouble is sure to follow.
We're in Japan again today with another Meiko Kaji poster. Above you see an incredibly rare circular promo for the pinku film Joshû sasori: Dai-41 zakkyo-bô, aka Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41, along with the standard promo. It premiered in Japan today in 1972. Meiko's paid her debt to society for now, so we'll let her go, but don't worry. She's a career criminal—she'll be back.
JapanToei CompanyJoshû sasori: Dai-41 zakkyo-bôFemale Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41Meiko Kajipinkupinky violenceposter artcinema
| Vintage Pulp | Dec 29 2018 |
Maximum security, maximum thrills.
Japanese manga artist Toru Shinohara painted two posters for Meiko Kaji's classic Female Convict series. We shared the first, for Joshuu sasori: Dai-41 zakkyo-bô, aka Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41, back in 2014. Here's the second, for Joshû sasori: 701-gô urami-bushi, aka Female Prisoner Scorpion: #701's Grudge Song. It premiered in Japan today in 1973. We'll get back to Shinohara a bit later.
JapanToei CompanyJoshû sasori: 701-gô urami-bushiFemale Prisoner Scorpion: #701's Grudge SongMeiko KajiToru Shinohara篠原とおるposter artcinemapinkupinky violence
| Vintage Pulp | Nov 21 2018 |
We're gambling that you'll like this poster.
Some of our proudest shares on this website have been the rare posters we've shown you for Hijirimen bakuto, aka, Hidirimen bakuto, aka Red Silk Gambler. All of those amazing promos have now proliferated online and you'll often see them used whenever someone writes about the movie. Well, we have one more to add to the mix, which is the tateken sized promo featuring all the main cast members—Hiroko Fuji, Junko Matsudaira, Mitsue Horikoshi, Eiko Nakamura, Sanae Tsuchida, Reiichi Hatanaka, and Reiko Ike. This should pretty much cover it for this film. Click here and scroll to see the entire collection. Hijirimen bakuto premiered in Japan today in 1972.
JapanToei CompanyHijirimen bakutoHidirimen bakutoRed Silk GamblerTeruo IshiiHiroko FujiJunko MatsudairaMitsue HorikoshiEiko NakamuraSanae TsuchidaReiko IkeReiichi Hatanakapinkupinky violenceposter artcinema
| Femmes Fatales | Jul 18 2018 |
Reiko Ike leaves everyone's tongues tied in nots.
Yes, we just shared a rare calendar page of pinku legend Reiko Ike, but what are you gonna do when she stars in photos like this one? We can't not post it. That's a double negative, we know, but some thoughts can only be expressed that way. We can't not not share this photo, because that would be immoral. Is that even right? Not the immoral part. The not part. If you decide you're not not not not going to do something, that means you're going to do it, right? Or maybe you can only successfully use a single double negative, and all the extra nots can only be used as emphasis rather than meaning, like saying you're never never never never going to do something, in which case that would mean you're not going to do it. Tricky questions. We could avoid them by using a single positive, but that would lack the exactness of the double negative. We will post it lacks the punch of we can't not post it. The meaning is similar, but the double negative removes our control over the decision, which is useful when the Pulp Intl. girlfriends look at the site. Baby, we couldn't not post it. So the double negative is better than the single positive and there's no such thing as a double positive. Well, maybe that's not strictly true. For instance, we're double positive about posting this photo. And gramatically speaking, people do say yes yes under certain circumstances, but those circumstances shouldn't occur while looking at naked photos on a computer. If that happens, we can only suggest that it's time to ask someone on a date.
| Vintage Pulp | Jun 7 2018 |
Once upon a time in Japan there was a badass named Reiko.
Today we're showing something special—a bo-ekibari style poster for Reiko Ike's Yasagure anego den: sôkatsu rinchi, also known as Female Yakuza Tale. The poster comes in beautiful blue and maroon tones, and the movie, a classic, comes in tones of blood. We wouldn't describe it as the number one pinku film of all time, but it's right up there. It opened in Japan today in 1973.
JapanFemale Yakuza TaleYasagure anego den: sôkatsu rinchiやさぐれ姐御伝 総括リンチReiko Ikeposter artcinemapinkupinky violence
| Vintage Pulp | May 24 2018 |
Seems like she gets tougher to work for every year.
The internet is all about change. When we first wrote about Miki Sugimoto’s 1973 pinku flick Sukeban–Kankain Dasso, aka Girl Boss: Escape from Reform School, we shared a rare tateken sized promo poster and mentioned that it was the first of its kind to appear online, while the standard sized promo could be found anywhere. Six years later it's the tateken poster that's everywhere online, while good scans of the standard promo seem to have disappeared. So here's a good scan of the standard promo. Sukeban–Kankain Dasso premiered in Japan today in 1973.
JapanToei CompanySukeban–Kankain DassoGirl Boss: Escape from Reform SchoolMiki Sugimotopinky violencepinkuposter artcinema
| Vintage Pulp | May 21 2018 |
You have the right to remain dead.
We already showed you a rare hand-painted poster for the pinky violence actioner Zeroka no onna: Akai wappa, aka Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs. Today we're showing you the tateken poster, which is rare too, so much so that this may be the best scan you'll of it see online. The kind of washed out look is part of the design. If you haven't seen the movie, it's about a vigilante cop played by Miki Sugimoto who is released from prison by a government agency in order to take down the kidnappers of a powerful politician's daughter.
Like most pinku movies, there's some sexual violence, and many reviewers excoriate this admittedly overused plot device. We don't claim those reviewers are wrong, but it should be noted that rape in pinku is often symbolic, serving both to advance the immediate plot and implant a deeper message. In this case the main perpetrator in the sexual assault of a young Japanese woman is wearing U.S. Navy coveralls. The depth of negative feeling about the U.S. occupation of Japan is made clear. All that said, the constant use of sexual assault in Japanese film—if it was ever artistically justified at all—definitely jumped the shark with the arrival of Nikkatsu Studios' roman porno offerings. We've talked about that before.
One interesting part of assessing vintage art is that at the time it was created the artists often thought they were making a certain statement, but decades later their art is perceived as sending the exact opposite message. Such is the case with pinky violence movies, in which maverick male filmmakers—in this case Yukio Noda—showed Japanese women taking on and usually destroying an entrenched male power structure, but only after being driven to it through degradation and violence. Which in screen terms meant rape. Were there other ways to show women driven to the point where they would kill? No doubt, but in patriarchal 1970s Japan the shock of these films was not how women were driven to kill men, but that they did—and often got away with it.
Miki Sugimoto deals with with some very bad men in Zero Woman, but her focus never wavers. She's to rescue the kidnapped daughter and dispose of the abductors in such a way that no news coverage or police investigation points back toward the father. Wrapped in a crimson raincoat she dispatches villain after villain, but learns that not even the presumed good guys are redeemable—not the politician, not the cops, nobody. It's grim, cynical, nihilistic stuff—and a classic of the genre. Zeroka no onna: Akai wappa opened in Japan today in 1974.
JapanToei CompanyZeroka no onna: Akai wappaZero Woman: Red Handcuffs０課の女 赤い手錠Miki SugimotoYukio Nodapinky violencepinkusexploitationposter artcinemamovie review
