Ichijo Sayuri: nureta yokujo

A variety theatre in the centre of Osaka. Harumi, a young strip-tease artiste, has had enough of the lesbian strip-tease show she does with Mari. She wants to start up on her own. The yakuza Isamu, Mari’s pimp, doesn’t think that is a good idea and beats her up. So Harumi’s lover Daikichi stabs Isamu and finds himself in jail, from which he has just emerged. Harumi perfects her act and does a special show with Ichijo Sayuri, her great example, and is arrested for it – the charge is obscene exhibitionism. In her yearning for fame, Harumi resembles the character Eve from All About Eve. But unlike Eve, Harumi makes lots of mistakes, she is bad tempered and doesn’t have the qualities of her great example. The film is characterised by its fine tempo and daring cutting sequences. The scene in which the pimp Isamu sings the rude song Nakanaka Zukushi is also striking. Isayama Hiroko, who plays Harumi, was deemed the best actress of that year by the film magazine Kinema Junpo.