School of the Holy Beast (1974)

The romantic montage that opens SotHB gives no indication of what follows once Maya enters the Sacred Heart Convent, a place where morals and judgements aren't as black and white as the religious habit the women wear. Do all convents have a Persecution Room?  0_0
The first half is uneventful, other than the usual bloody flagellation, lesbianism and nudity you almost always get in a nunsploitation flick, but the remainder is atypical thanks to Suzuki’s eye for beauty and art. The dreamlike quality of the imagery separates it from the trash. Pissing on an effigy of Jesus is rarely this entertaining. (Sorry, mom.)

3 strict principles out of 5

Sex and Fury (1973)

A more apt title would be ‘Sex, Fury and Politics,’ because they're what the film is unevenly split between. The ‘Fury’ is by far the best of the three aspects but it’s the part that receives the least screen time, which is a great shame, because when the swordplay erupts the frame comes alive and the blood spurts are more than satisfying. When that same principle is taken to the card table, sparks replace the blood. If the conflict of interests that underpins the Meiji era politics had equalled the violence for drama the film would be even more deserving of the praise it currently receives.

3½ bloodstained flower cards out of 5