Revenge of the Pearl Queen

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Revenge of the Pearl Queen

Directed by	Toshio Shimura
Written by	Isao Matsumoto, Jun Sagara
Starring	Michiko Maeda, Ken Utsui
Cinematography	Tatsuo Tomonari
Distributed by	Shintōhō
Release date	July 5, 1956 (1956-07-05)
Running time	89 min
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Revenge of the Pearl Queen (女真珠王の復讐, Ona shinju-ō no fukushū)^[1] is a 1956 Japanese thriller film directed by Toshio Shimura and starring Michiko Maeda. This film was one of the earliest Japanese films featuring nudity.^[2]

Plot

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Yoshio Kizaki is framed for murder and theft by his corrupt boss Kenji Asamura. When Natsuki Kagawa, Kizaki's lover who works for the same boss, discovers the plot on a sea voyage, Asamura throws her overboard. Natsuki is washed up on an island where she is rescued by a group of shipwrecked sailors. Fending off the lecherous sailors, she dives for pearls in the surrounding waters and eventually amasses a fortune which she uses to free her lover from prison.^[2]

The plot strongly resembles that of the last film of Josef von Sternberg, the 1953 Saga of Anatahan, which told the reputedly true story of stranded Japanese seamen on an island who murder each other for the favors of the only woman.^[2]

Cast

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Michiko Maeda as Natsuki Kagawa/Pearl Queen
Ken Utsui as Yoshio Kizaki
Shigeru Amachi as Yuzo Yamauchi
Saburō Sawai as Ryōhei Ishizuka
Susumu Fujita as Kenji Asamura

Production

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Revenge Of The Pearl Queen was the first of five low budget films produced by the Shintōhō studio featuring Japanese diving girls (ama) although this film had no actual ama in the plot. The following year, Shintōhō released their first genuine ama film, The Girl Diver Trembles in Fear, also directed by Toshio Shimura and starring Michiko Maeda.^[2]

References

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^ 女真珠王の復讐 (in Japanese). JMDB. Retrieved 2014-04-18.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Sharp, Jasper (2008). Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Sex Cinema. Guildford: FAB Press. pp. 35–37. ISBN 978-1-903254-54-7.

External links

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Revenge of the Pearl Queen at IMDb
"Shintoho Mindwarp: REVENGE OF THE PEARL QUEEN". Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. Retrieved 2014-04-18.
"Revenge Of The Pearl Queen". Far East Film Festival. Retrieved 2014-04-19.

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