Any film that opens with a naked woman being boiled alive is going to be harsh viewing, but there are very few films that are as wanton in their depiction of sadistic violence and sexual brutality as Shogun's Sadism (AKA The Joy of Torture 2: Oxen Split Torturing),a film that positively delights in trying to shock its audience in as many ways as possible; even by Japanese standards, this is one extremely repugnant piece of film-making, and therefore an absolute must-see for fans of extreme Asian cinema.

The film consists of two separate tales set in feudal Japan during the Edo period, taking place in the years 1645 and 1821; both are tragic love stories of sorts, but the doomed relationships that unfold exist purely as catalysts for an unrelenting onslaught of on-screen nastiness.

Part one sees samurai Sasaki Iori fall for lovely peasant girl Toyo, unaware that she is a Christian and therefore an 'enemy' of the Shogunate. Amongst the dubious delights unflinchingly captured on film by director Yuuji Makiguchi for this chapter: a man cut in half with a samurai sword; Toyo repeatedly raped by Sasaki's newt-munching boss; Toyo's twelve year old sister blinded with a red hot poker; a man's feet mashed to a bright red pulp by huge hammers; some poor sod roasted alive inside a man sized cooking pot; Toyo's parents stabbed with spears and set alight; and Toyo's legs torn off by oxen.

Story number two has beautiful whore Sato join con-artist Sutezo in a life of petty crime after her daring escape from a brothel; but when the pair unknowingly attempt to scam a detective working for the magistrate, they wind up in a worse situation than ever, subjected to a series of brutal tortures. This time around the catalogue of nastiness includes a stomach churning forced abortion by a wizened hag (who goes elbow-deep to perform her task!); ear slicing and penis removal with a blunt razor; a desperate escape through a toilet full of liquid feces; the gang rape of Sato by a group of beggars; assorted sadism, including toe-slicing, nipple crushing, and water torture; and Sutezo, trapped in a pillory, slowly decapitated by a passing drunkard. Also keep an eye out for the very strange moment where a naked woman is covered in a sticky substance (possibly honey) and licked all over by cute puppies!!!

As seems to be the case with much of Toei's exploitative output of the 70s, production values are high, giving this film a polished aesthetic that is missing from many Western exploitation movies of the same period; don't be fooled by the glossy look and feel of the film though, 'cos this is much grittier stuff than the majority of grainy grindhouse flicks from the US.

Oxen Split Torture is apparently a follow up to the omnibus style torture flick Joy of Torture released in 1968. I have no idea if there are actually any links between the two films (other than content) and I'm thinking that this film is just trying to cash in on the popularity(?) of the earlier one. That sort of thing is often a recipe for a terrible film; but actually, for what it is, Oxen Split Torture is really rather good. The first film had three separate stories; this one only has two and it's a good deal shorter, but it's also much nastier. The plots of both of the stories focus on torture; I'm not going to get into the specifics of either because the plot lines are not important. What is important is the gore and while the film is not overly gory all the way through - when it does feature the red stuff, it features it heavily and some of the torture scenes really are quite shocking - a scene that sees a man have his foot literally battered away from his leg is a particular highlight in that respect. Director Yuuji Makiguchi really takes care to ensure that the gore scenes are as realistic and graphic as possible; and that is a huge positive for the film. If you want to see something cringe-worthy, don't miss this! I would even go as far as to say that Oxen Split Torture is superior to the original Joy of Torture - it might not be as classy, but it's much more violent and that's all anyone can ask for from a torture flick.

"Shogun's Sadism" is a truly shocking drama/horror in which a number of bizarre and merciless methods of torture are carried out under the law of the Tokugawa Shogunate in a most realistic way.The story centers on an antagonism between a magistrate who finds sadistic pleasure in using all kinds of ruthless torture to sadistically torment Christians and a guard named Sasaki who despises such means.Yet in between all the the excessive violence,"Oxen Split Torturing" also features a tragic love story between Sasaki and a woman called Toyo,suspected of being a Christian.The second story takes place in a brothel,where works Sutezo as a cleaner/handyman.He decides to flee with a young prostitute named Sato.Unfortunately they are caught by the local magistrate and the nightmarish session of torture begins..."Shogun's Sadism" is an extremely brutal film loaded with shocking torture scenes and lots of sexual violence.We see women thrown into big vats of snakes,raped and,as in the title,ripped apart by oxen who each have a rope attached to one of the woman's limbs,tearing her apart when they run away from her.So if you liked Teruo Ishii's infamous "The Joy of Torture" series you can't go wrong with this sadistic spectacle.8 out of 10.Not for the squeamish or easily offended!