Carmen from Kawachibrings the nihilist Suzuki universe to a woman's life in the decidedlyunsentimental education of a provincial factory worker, Tsuyuko, whoserape by two fellow villagers starts her on the road to sexual awarenessand finally, independence. It is a long, picaresque road indeed,meandering from Osaka's Club Dada, through liaisons with a millionaire,a dominatrix, and an action painter-all the while cohabiting with adegenerate if loving roué. The determining encounter, whichbrings the story full circle, is with a corrupt monk whose sordid affairwith her mother had been for Tsuyuko a primal introduction to sexualhypocrisy and male brutality. In adapting a novel by the author ofAkutaro, Suzuki blends satire with melodrama to surrealistic effect.Yumiko Nogawa, the director's favorite actress, also was featured inStory of a Prostitute and Gate of Flesh. "In his trilogy ofwomen-centered films, Suzuki celebrates his heroines' fierce sensualityand resilience as a kind of spiritual force in an otherwiseamoral...universe." (James Quandt)