Though he's not credited, this film seems to be based on a story by Edogawa Rampo, which has previously been adapted in the anthology film Rampo Noir. This film transports the story to the WWII era. Keigo Kasuya returns home from the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1940 a quadruple amputee - no arms, no legs - without the ability to speak. His wife (Shinobu Terajima) is reviled, but soon falls back into her position as loyal spouse. The film examines the patriotic fervor of the times - Kasuya is declared a "war god" and is worshiped by the locals. Privately, the couple's life is Hell. A power struggle arises between them, and Terajima - who before the war was a victim of abuse by her husband - realizes she has power that she didn't have before. The political aspects of the film are the most interesting part. The focus on sex - which was the main focus of Rampo's story - gets a tad boring after a while. Both leads are fantastic, particularly Terajima, who obviously has a lot more to do. The film could stand to look better - it was filmed digitally and transferred to film, and is very murky. All in all, it's quite good.
