-Some Spoilers Ahead- On her last day of freedom, beautiful Takigawa Mari (Takigawa Yumi) spends her hours enjoying all of what the decadent and carefree 70's lifestyle has to offer (watching a Hockey Game, seeing movies, drinking alcohol, playing Arcade Games, casual sex with a handsome stranger), this before she enters the repressed and strictly governed world of a Japanese Catholic Nunnery, where she finds a world of unbelievable and bizarre ritual and suffering. Thus is the premise behind this utterly awful sexploitation film, `Sei Ju Gakuen' or more better known by its sensationalized English title `School of the Holy Beast'. This film has it all.self flagellation, Lesbianism, S & M torture and bondage, catfights, rampant nudity, rape and sex. `Sei Ju Gakuen' seems to have an odd perception of Catholicism at times bordering on distain as the film constantly warps and perverts Religious Ceremony and juxtaposes Holy Symbolism with carnal sex and violence. The use of Nuns is but a gimmick used to wrap-around this mixed up story which takes elements from many of Toei's other exploitation films of the time like director Norifumi's earlier `Onna Bancho' AKA Sukeban -1971. Takegawa Yumi thankfully went on to star in better things than this as she is wasted on this ill conceived project. It's probably better not to read too much into the film but suffice to say `Sei Ju Gakuen' is your standard '70's exploitation film (and not a very good one) whose only selling point is in its pure shamelessness.
Review of The Transgressor
