Madame O (1967) User Reviews

revenge flick well made

[trashgang · 6/10 · 8 May 2012]

Being made in 1967 it's naturally a bit low on horror by which I mean blood or even gore. But that doesn't mean that it isn't watchable. The overall look reminded me a bit of Hitchcock. It's filmed in a rather special way because some shots are in black and white and others are in colour, for you to find out why.

But the story still works nowadays. A girl being raped at the age of sixteen got infected by syphilis. She (Michiko Aoyama)becomes a doctor and is out for revenge. Of course it all works out perfectly until she met another doctor (Ahihiko Kaminara).

The thing I was surprised by was the use of nudity for a flick being made in 1967. All the girls in this flick do show their breasts. Back then in Japan that was a thing not done, even today private parts are mostly blurred.

There's only one actor here (Yuichi Minato) who made it into the scene outside Japan. He was seen in a few Takashi Miike flicks like Fudoh (1996) and Dead Or Alive 2 (2000) as the head of the orphanage.

A classic in Japan, a pure revenge flick with a little twist, but if you go watch it place it in the time being made.

Gore 0/5 Nudity 1/5 Effects 0/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

I SPIT ON YOUR INFECTED BODY

[nogodnomasters · 6/10 · 16 May 2019]

Saeko (Michiko Sakyô) is a female doctor who delivers babies. At age 16 three boys had their way with her and she contracted syphilis. Apparently she kept the syphilis. As an adult she goes out and entices men to infect them. She also performs her own abortions. Lately she has been having trouble and adds a doctor to help her, a man who seems to know compassion, someone she doesn't want to kill off with disease.

Some of the film is in color whole other portions are in black and white. The change seemed to be done for no other reason, than "what film do we have available." Considered a cult classic. I thought "Nurse" to be far better entertainment.

Sex and nudity in black and white and color (Michiko Sakyô, Naomi Tani)

Content Suited Only for a Mature Audience

[Uriah43 · 5/10 · 21 October 2013]

As a young woman of only 16 "Seiko Minami" is gang raped and not long afterward finds out that she is pregnant. She also discovers that she has contracted syphilis as well. Being extremely old-fashioned, her father refuses to allow her to have any contact with young men from then on. For her it is just as well because she harbors an extreme hatred for them anyway. So, when she gets older she becomes a gynecologist during the day and a vengeful tramp at night who injects her male companions with syphilis after having sex with them. However things change when she meets and then falls in love with a physician by the name of "Dr. Watanabe" (Yuichi Minato). Unfortunately, the past has a way of catching up to people. Now, rather than reveal what happens next and possibly spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this was a rather risqué movie from Japan during this particular time. There is some sex and brief nudity along with content suited only for a mature audience. Even so, I didn't find it particularly erotic and the decision by the director (Seiichi Fukuda) to switch between color and black & white film wasn't particularly effective or artistic in my opinion. In short, this was an okay movie but I honestly don't think it merits anything higher than an average rating.

Japanese film noir leaves a deep impression

[fertilecelluloid · 8/10 · 7 August 2008]

This extremely accomplished example of Japanese film noir managed to induce a sense of queasiness in me. Centering on the life of a successful female doctor (Michiko Sakyo) who saves lives during the day and takes lives during the night, it is a unique marriage of noirish film elements and bizarre horror. Raped on a beach when she was a teenager, our heroine lives with the lasting pain of the experience and destroys every man she stumbles across. Her killing ritual usually involves cutting and poisoning, although she also uses a syringe and is not above giving non-consensual hysterectomies to female associates of the men she despises. Sakyo is utterly convincing and mesmerizing as the sad-faced woman. Despite her callous actions, she is a figure of enormous sympathy, and I found myself really caring for her. The doc's grim life changes when she becomes romantically involved with another doctor, a handsome, silent type who seems to be the exact opposite of what she dislikes in a man. Director Seiichi Fukuda utilizes black and white for the present day story, and employs color for flashbacks and shock revelations; it's a style that works well. "Madame O" is an intensely sad, sometimes macabre, always original piece of cinema. The performances are uniformly excellent and the impression it leaves is a deep one. Highly recommended.

fascinating study of passion,

[christopher-underwood · 8/10 · 11 January 2009]

Highly original and involving movie, beautifully photographed in b/w and colour. The colour switching can be a little confusing but another reviewer has suggested that the b/w sequences represent the present whilst the colour is for the past and particularly important moments. They may well be right, I shall have to pay greater attention next time. For surely this exciting tale is well worth seeing more than once. From the opening shots in the hospital operating theatre and the childhood rape sequence , mostly in long shot on the beach, till the denouement in the tunnel, this is a fascinating study of passion, revenge and greed. All told in such a matter-of-fact manner, with no give-away music score, that even when there are slightly creaky moments, we believe it all. NB: Please ignore completely the ridiculous fake review by Mitsukai.

Last comment fantasy of reviewer

[drdaleposey · 8/10 · 17 September 2008]

Well, the review by Mitsukai is completely made up. It's a pretty good joke,however, but don't think that the movie has anything to do with it. It's about this gynecologist who was raped as a child and grows up to become a successful doctor by day and a hustler by night. She picks up men to give them the venereal disease she contracted during the rape. Of course, things get weirder when she finally meets the man of her dreams and falls in love.

A well executed suspenseful movie with a strong moralistic ending, consistent with the times. A bit of nudity and sex but nothing too graphic. Shot in a rather bleak and atmospheric manner with a mixture of black and white and color photography. Worth watching, just don't expect the other reviewer's sushi scene.