Two devious retainers are competing to take control of a fief when the current Lord dies, but involving Kyoshiro in the conflict against his will is the textbook example of a bad idea - especially when the collateral damage starts to tick him off.
Acting
Yoshie Mizutani plays carnal manipulation like a violin.
Direction
Tanaka stages seduction and slaughter with equal coldness.
Cinematography
Shadow-drenched palaces that reek of rotting privilege.
Director
Tokuzō Tanaka
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'hell is a woman' title riffs on a Buddhist proverb, but the film weaponizes it—suggesting men create hell and blame women for the heat.
Tenth in a 12-film series, yet Raizō Ichikawa reportedly grew bored of the character—his increasing detachment fuels Kyoshiro's nihilistic spiral.
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1968
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5.11969
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