Europe tends to get the most attention when it comes to cinematic adaptations of the Marquis de Sade, particularly when considering the titles currently available on DVD (JUSTINE AND JULIETTE, EUGENIE DE SADE, EUGENIE... THE STORY OF HER JOURNEY INTO PERVERSION, etc), but leave it to the land of the rising sun to birth one of the most decadent and visually stunning pictures to ever take on the Marquis.

Taking place in 1920s Japan, Akutoku no sakae (dubbed MARQUIS DE SADE'S PROSPERITIES OF VICE for this release) stars Koji Shimizu as a wealthy and sadistic aristocrat whose every waking moment is spent in the pursuit of depravity and the decadence of vice. Using local thugs and criminals as actors and stagehands, the corrupt count constructs a play as a means of bringing to life the works of his muse, the Marquis de Sade. Between glutinous feasts and orgies of humiliation, the count is encouraged by his fellow noblemen (and women) to push and explore the boundaries of excess and hedonism, both on the stage and at home. As such, the count employs one of his cast, a thief, to steal (rape) his wife in the night, an act which he and his jaded entourage take great pleasure in watching from a darkened adjacent room. Leering through peepholes, the party watches as the counts wife (Seiran Li) succumbs to the intrusion, eventually giving herself over not only to her attacker but the attack itself. The incident however awakens the young woman, who since a child has been little more than a toy to her husband and his friends. Finding both pleasure and solace in her pain, the young wife turns the tables on her benefactor, providing a distraction to both the play's audience and its director.

Growing government censorship and the rise of home video in the early 1980s eventually proved fatal to Nikkatsu’s Roman Porno line. Faced with waning attendance and falling revenue, the studio was ultimately forced to close the book on its once popular genre as it was unable to sustain itself next to the rising popularity of the AV (Adult Video) industry. Nikkatsu however did attempt to reboot its Pink Film production in the late 1980s with a new line dubbed Ropponica. This new line of erotic films brought a more arthouse aesthetic to the table while maintaining the story arch’s and plot devices that had proved so popular (and profitable) in the past. As such, sex and flesh are displayed not only to titillate but to further the story. In VICE, the rich and powerful gain pleasure out of degrading their servants and indulging in the excesses available to those with wealth. However when the count's wife takes the pain and degradation as her own, it promptly changes the dynamic, as what was once clearly an act of humiliation is suddenly not so black and white.

Akio Jissoji is a hard director to pigeonhole as his filmography varies so greatly. From science fiction, action adventures such as ULTRAMAN, to adaptations of the works of Edogawa Rampo, it’s not that Akio is able to jump from one genre to another that is so impressive but the fact that he is able to do so, so effectively. Made around the same time as Teito monogatari, better know in America as TOKYO: THE LAST MEGALOPOLIS, VICE is a stunningly shot, expertly executed tale of decadence and depravity. Color and shadow are wielded like a paintbrush, composing scenes of arresting pain and palpable mood. Likewise, scenes of ecstasy and torture (and in this film both are often one and the same) are framed for effect rather than shock, showing just enough to convey the emotion and potential repercussions of the scene. There is no need for fuzzy mosaics of intercourse or large black boxes of concealment; the action is clear and often conveyed solely in the faces of the actors. All around performance are strong and fans of modern Japanese cinema will be pleased to see a familiar face in Renji Ishibashi, a Takashi Miike regular with roles in THE BIRD PEOPLE IN CHINA, GOZU and AUDITION to name a few.