Ten Dark Women

A philandering married TV exec gets his comeuppance when ten (count 'em) of the women he's used and abused join forces to bring a permanent halt to his activities. Ichikawa has great fun with this feminist fable, shooting it like a film noir with just enough exaggeration so we're in on the joke, and emphasising the depthless inanity of the television studio milieu. At its centre is a most amusing turn from Funakoshi as the wheedling love rat, genuinely surprised that his various conquests have decided to throw off the shackles of victimhood, while wronged spouse Yamamoto and her female co-stars too clearly relish the opportunity to talk tough and play tougher. Wada's zesty screenplay supports the theory that her husband Ichikawa produced his best work when they worked together, a partnership that lasted until 1965. Here, the script carries its seriousness lightly, but we surely take the point. Husband: 'Why do you want to kill me? I just don't understand.' Wife: 'That's why we want to kill you!'