In the Realm of the Senses

In the Realm of the Senses
Japanese theatrical poster
Directed byNagisa Ōshima
Screenplay byNagisa Ōshima
Based onInspired by a true story of Sada Abe, influenced by The World of Geisha directed by Tatsumi Kumashiro
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyHideo Ito
Edited byKeiichi Uraoka
Music byMinoru Miki
Production
companies
  • Oshima Productions
  • Argos Films
  • Oceanic
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 15 September 1976 (1976-09-15) (France)
  • 16 October 1976 (1976-10-16) (Japan)
Running time
  • 102 minutes (Producer's Cut)
  • 108 minutes (theatrical cut)
Countries
  • Japan
  • France
LanguageJapanese
Box office
  • $7.65 million (France/Germany)
  • 1,424,906 kr (Sweden)

In the Realm of the Senses (Japanese: 愛のコリーダ, lit.'Bullfight of Love', French: L'Empire des sens) is a 1976 erotic art film written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima. It is a fictionalised and sexually explicit treatment of a 1936 murder committed by Sada Abe. An international coproduction between Japanese and French companies, the film generated great controversy at the time of its release. The film had the involvement of pink film luminary Kōji Wakamatsu as co-screenwriter and assistant producer. While intended for mainstream wide release, the film contains scenes of unsimulated sexual activity between the actors (Eiko Matsuda and Tatsuya Fuji, among others).