This is a re-issue of the seminal edgy Japanese arthouse movie from 1969 that for a very long time was unavailable in the U.S. even though is was one of major influence for Stanley Kubrick when he made A Clockwork Orange.  It is very loosely based on the ancient Greek legend of Oedipus (the guy who slept with his mum and then killed his dad).   The difference in writer/director Toshio Matsumoto ‘s movie is that Eddie the transgender protagonist (Pîtâ) sleeps with his father and murders his mother.

The plot follows the highly strung Eddie in his determined quest to win the heart of Greco  (Flamenco Umeji) the boss of the Genet Bar where Eddie works.  The trouble is that he is not Greco’s only suitor as he is also being pursued by the femme-fatale Leda (Osamu Ogasawaro). The struggle between the two of them leads to some outrageously gory climatic scenes which are certainly not for the feint hearted.

On its released, the movie was considered a masterpiece by many but also dismissed as an indulgent psychedelic mish mash by others. It’s a visual overload with some speeded up montages and a furious pace and set to classical music,  all of which have been edited to both bedazzle and confused. This rather intense depiction of the gay underworld sub-culture in 1960’s Tokyo is a bizarre avant-garde piece of work that will both shock and enthrall. 

This is definitely one that is strictly for devoted cinephiles as it will surely test the patience and the stamina of everyone else.