Belladonna of Sadness

1973 / 93min / DCP

One of the great lost masterpieces of Japanese and adult animation, with its horned demons, haunted forests, and explicit eroticism, this mad, swirling, psychedelic light show is equal parts J.R.R. Tolkien and Gustav Klimt. Produced by the godfather of Japanese anime and manga, Osamu Tezuka, and directed by Eiichi Yamamoto, Belladonna of Sadness—about an innocent young woman who makes a pact with the devil (voiced by Tatsuya Nakadai!) to take revenge on the local lord who raped her on her wedding night—unfolds as a series of spectacular, still watercolor paintings that bleed and twist together. Transgressive and not for the easily offended, the 2015 restoration, made from the sole surviving 35mm camera negative and sound elements, features over eight minutes of footage cut from the original version.