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| Images courtesy of Third Window Films |
Love Hotel (1985) is a circular film that explores the darkest corners of romance and sex and how shared tragedy can connect people, if only for a fleeting moment. The shocking opening focuses on Tetsuro Muraki (Minori Terada), a man who owns a failing publishing company, as he comes home and finds his wife being sexually assaulted by a group of Yakuza. He had borrowed money from them to the tune of thirty million yen, and as payment and punishment, they force Tetsuro to watch them violate the love of his life. Devastated, Tetsuro goes to a local love hotel that evening and purchases the services of Yumi (Noriko Hayami), intending to sexually abuse her, kill her, and then commit suicide. Fortunately, he doesn't go through with the murder-suicide and disappears into the night, leaving her on the bed shaken and traumatized.
Since this movie is technically part of Nikkatsu's Roman Porno series and, thus, at its heart, a sexploitation film, the opening act would lead one to believe that the story is only concerned with titillation and degradation kinks, but as the narrative evolves, it transforms into a touching character study. Years have passed since the Love Hotel incident, and Tetsuro and Yumi (who now uses her real name, Nami) have moved on with their lives. Tetsuro is a taxi driver and has divorced his wife, and Nami has left the sex worker business and works in a clothing store. They are both haunted by their past lives, which keeps them from finding true intimacy with other people. Nami is having an affair with a married man, only seeing him when they make love in a hotel, and Tetsuro has cut himself off from everyone, only focusing on his job.
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When their paths cross again, Nami catching a ride in Tetsuro's cab one evening, it is like they are transported back to that neon-lit night in the love hotel, an act of transgression turned into a memory of longing by time and nostalgia. Tetsuro tried to use Nami to placate his emasculation at the hands of the Yakuza, watching helplessly as they ravaged his wife. Nami, conversely, found sexual excitement in the danger, and it lingers in her mind even years later. It could be why she chases married men; she secretly enjoys the uncertainty and thrill. These are two lost souls who are connected by anguish and grief.
As Nami and Tetsuro fall back into a pseudo-relationship with each other, it becomes an exploration of trauma bonding and co-dependency. These relationships have been depicted before in films, such as The Night Porter (1974) and Blind Beast (1969). Though they lack the ongoing sinister element of both of the male protagonists in those films, they tread similar ground. The film doesn't necessarily condone these two being together but is empathetic to their emotional state and how people cope with complicated moral choices. Like Shinji Somai's other films, the pacing is languid with many long takes, allowing the viewer to immerse themselves fully into the character's perspective and watch them in their natural surroundings. In the end, it is up in the air as to whether Tetsuro and Nami's tryst has helped them outside of their furtive sexual encounter, but it is evident that, for at least a moment, they were happy in each other's arms. Their story begins and ends in the neon-soaked bedroom of the love hotel.
Extras:
Josh Slater-Williams' excellent fifteen-minute-long video essay gives the history of the Director's Company, an overview of Somai's artistic style, and a run through of the themes of Somai's four films he directed for the Director's Company: Love Hotel, Typhoon Club, Luminous Woman, and Tokyo Heaven. Jaspar Sharp's full-length commentary is illuminating and is a fascinating lesson on the difference between Roman Porno and pink films as well as the history of the relationship between the Director's Company and Nikkatsu.
Blu-Ray Extras:
• Feature length audio commentary by Jasper Sharp
• Shinji Somai at the Director’s Company: Video essay by Josh Slater-Williams
• Archival interview with actor Minori Terada and assistant director Koji Enokido
• Original Trailer
• Slipcase with artwork from Gokaiju
• ‘Directors Company’ edition featuring insert by Jasper Sharp – limited to 2000 copies
--Michelle Kisner