Only last Friday I was talking about my love of ludicrous film titles, especially Japanese ones, and here I am now reviewing a film titled Semen Demon. To be fair, Semen Demon is a retitling courtesy of its international distributor. Still, credit must be given to Pink Eiga Inc. for such a hilarious re-branding – well done! Now onto the film…

 

SEMEN DEMON
original title: Hentai kazoku niiduma inran zeme
Japan, 2005, Minoru Inao

A newlywed and sexually inexperienced woman (Reiko Yamaguchi) brings an exorcist (Kanae Mizuhara) into her house in hope of exercising a demon that is making her married life extremely uncomfortable. Her husband is quite the pervert. He enjoys tying his wife up, tearing off her panties, bringing prostitutes to the house and… uh… well, just have a look at the second screenshot. Turns out perversion runs in the family, the woman’s father-in-law is also a creep. When his daughter-in-law approaches him about his son’s uncontrollable sexual appetite, he confesses to watching them in the act and then proceeds to rape her. With all these lusty goings-on, the woman assumes their home must be cursed. The exorcist doesn’t take her seriously at first, but when she enters the house, she does indeed find that a demon has put a sexually deranged grudge upon the house.

The title Semen Demon may bring to mind Urotsukidōji-esque demons and tentacles being inserted into orifices left, right and centre, but alas, this is not the case. Still, Semen Demon is undoubtedly a pervy affair. From the first demented sex scene, the husband is in fine form. There is a very Japanese creativity to the execution of his fetishes as he awkwardly ties his wife up and, giggling and muttering like a man possessed, cuts a small hole in her panties to perform cunnilingus. The father-in-law’s sexual desire is a little more straightforward and brute. He doesn’t seem so much moved by weird sex, rather he is more interested in his daughter-in-law’s breasts. The fetishism dies down in the film’s final act, making way for a more straightforward lovemaking scene… sort of.

Despite the fact that Semen Demon is essentially just under an hour of wife assault, I can’t imagine many people taking offense. (The sort of person that would take offense is not going to seek out a film called Semen Demon.) Semen Demon is a comedy, and not even a very dark one at that. Sandwiched between the barrage of sex scenes are conversations between the wife and the exorcist as they attempt to determine whether there really is a demon or if the woman’s husband is simply a pervert. These moments are very funny and receive a shot of surrealism from their dreary beach setting that would not be out of place in a Jean Rollin film. The film’s demonic reveal is also hilariously absurd and almost heartwarming.

I tend to prefer my pink eiga with a bit more of a plot than what is presented in Semen Demon. Luckily, the miniscule cast keeps the film engaging. The demented father and son duo are sweaty, drooling perfection, but it’s the ladies that steal the show. Yumeka Sasaki (A Lonely Cow Weeps at Dawn, Anarchy in [Ja]Panty) has a small role as a prostitute and, even with limited screen time, she leaves an impression. Kanae Mizuhara (Twilight Dinner), playing the exorcist, provides many of the laughs in her exaggerated role. The true star, of course, is Reiko Yamaguchi (The Japanese Wife Next Door). It’s not hard to see why AV idol Reiko is so popular. Her famous boobs are impressive indeed, but she is also a decent actress. Although she is essentially the “straight man” of the story, her uptight performance had me chuckling quite a bit.

Semen Demon is not pink cinema’s finest offering, but it is very enjoyable. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Semen Demon, and that of all of Pink Eiga’s releases, is its ability to rise above its budgetary limitations; showing how much you can do with so little. Like many pinku eiga, it sets itself aside from the bulk of pornographic films with excellent cinematography and decent performances. Semen Demon won’t win everyone over, but there’s no denying it’s a real film. Semen Demon is available as a VOD title from Pink Eiga Inc. for only a few bucks!