Belladonna of Sadness
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Art Nouveau revivalism inspired by the likes of Aubrey Beardsley's Victorian parodies, which were likewise inspired by erotic-grotesque shunga prints, thus coming full circle back to Japan. Much of the film features Fukai's drawings directly, with the camera panning over still frames, but the film often transitions seamlessly into full animation thanks to animation director Gisaburo Sugii."--Esotikafilm |
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Belladonna (1973) is Japanese animation film directed and co-written by Eiichi Yamamoto inspired by Jules Michelet's non-fiction book on witchcraft Satanism and Witchcraft (1862). Its visuals consist mostly of still paintings panned across and are strongly influenced by western art, particularly Aubrey Beardsley, Gustav Klimt
It follows the story of Jeanne, a peasant woman who is raped which leads to her being accused of witchcraft, and is notable for its graphic and suggestively erotic, violent and psychedelic imagery, as well as the psychedelic score by Masahiko Satoh.
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Plot
Jeanne and Jean are newlyweds in a rural village in medieval France. But on Jeanne's wedding night, she is brutally gang-raped in a ritual deflowering by the local baron and his courtiers. She returns to Jean terrified, and he attempts to calm her by saying they can start over from that moment. Shortly after they embrace, however, Jean strangles Jeanne to a state of unconsciousness. Ashamed, he flees outside their home.
That night, Jeanne begins to see visions of a phallic-headed spirit who promises her power. The spirit tells her it heard her calling for help, and that it can grow as big and powerful as she wants it to. As a result, the couple's fortunes rise even as famine strikes the village, and the baron raises taxes to fund his war effort. Formerly exhausted by his life of menial labor, Jean is elevated to the role of tax collector. But the baron cuts off Jean's hand as punishment when he could not extract enough money from the village, leaving him miserable and drunk.
The spirit visits Jeanne once again (having grown in size) and rapes her in exchange for more riches. Although she submits her body, she attests that her soul still belongs to Jean and to God. Shortly after, Jeanne takes out a large loan from a usurer and sets herself up in the same trade, eventually becoming the true power in the village. The baron returns victorious from his war, and his wife, envious of the respect and admiration Jeanne received, calls her a witch and turns the villagers against her. Running from the mob, Jeanne tries to return home to Jean, but he refuses to open the door and she is assaulted.
That evening, when soldiers come to arrest her, she flees into the nearby forest. In the wilderness, she finally makes a pact with the spirit, who reveals himself to be the Devil. She is granted magical powers, and returns to find the village has been infected with the bubonic plague. Jeanne uses her powers to create a cure for the disease, and the village flocks to her for aid. Having won their favor, Jeanne presides over orgiastic rites among the villagers.
A page, who falls in love with the baron's wife, begs Jeanne to help him seduce her. She gives him a love potion that causes the baron's wife to accept his advances, but the baron catches his wife sleeping with the page and kills them both. Perturbed by Jeanne's power, the baron sends Jean to invite her to a meeting. The couple reconciled, and Jeanne accepts the invitation. In exchange for sharing her cure for the plague, the baron offers to make Jeanne the second-highest noble in the land, but she refuses, saying she wishes to take over the entire world.
Angered at her refusal, the baron orders Jeanne burnt at the stake. Jean is killed by the baron's soldiers when he tries to retaliate, which angers the villagers. As Jeanne is burned, the faces of the villagers transform into Jeanne's, fulfilling a priest's warning that if a witch is burnt while her pride is intact, the evil in her soul will survive and spread to influence everyone around her. Centuries later, the influence of Jeanne's spirit initiates The French Revolution.
OST
The OST to Belladonna of Sadness was released on the Italian Cinevox label. The music is composed by Masahiko Sato, vocals by Mayumi Tachibana and the lyrics by Yu Aku and Asei Kobayahsi.
Cast
- Jeanne: (Aiko Nagayama)
- Jean: (Katsutaka Ito)
- Witch: (Tatsuya Tashiro)
- The Devil (Tatsuya Nakadai)
- Milord: (Masaya Takahashi)
- Milady: (Shigaku Shimegi)
- Catholic Priest: (Masakane Yonekura)
- Narrator: (Chinatsu Nakayama)
Trivia
- The drawing style of this movie was the inspiration for the drawing styles of Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo.
- Kunihiko Ikuhara, director of the S and Super S seasons of Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena has stated that Kanashimi no Belladonna was his inspiration to work in anime. The influence is more clear in Utena than in Sailor Moon.
See also
