In the vast plethora of exploitation films of the 60s and 70s that fostered a female vigilante as their protagonist, the “Red Peony Gambler” series was one of the most successful, resulting in eight episodes that screened from 1968 to 1972. Toei tried to build up on that success with a new series titled “Red Silk Gambler“, essentially copying the premises of the original work, since the only differences between the two characters is that the latter had a lily tattoo instead of a peony. Poor box office receipts (at a time when audiences in generally were vanishing) meant the film did not launch a new series after all, although neither the commercial failure nor the copying mean that the film is not of quality.
The story is based on a novel by Oniroku Dan, and revolves around a woman nicknamed Tiger Lily, who, as the film begins, visits a rich man’s house, politely announcing to an attendant that she is there to butcher them all as revenge for her father, a threat she proceeds on making real, effective immediately. This scene actually sets the tone for the rest of the film, but not before a brief spell of her spending some time in prison, where she gets her tattoo after an interaction with Ohide, a woman at least as cool as herself, who fosters a huge piece of ink in her back and can use her sexuality to sway even the strictest jailor.
The rest of the movie takes an episodic nature as Tiger Lily is in search of a man who saved her life during a battle some years ago, in a search that brings her facing two female fighters. Onaka, a thief who is after her to avenge her father’s death and confronts the protagonist completely naked in a bath house and Omon, a blind gambler with yakuza ties. Their fight, however, brings them closer actually, after Tiger Lily has won against them, and along with Oryu, a young girl sold as a prostitute to a gambling family, form a gang of sorts. Eventually, however, their path brings them against a cunning yakuza boss, just as the man Tiger Lily was searching for, appears, being the only one who seems to be able to get the best of her, with Bunta Sugawara appearing as imposing and cool as ever.
In terms of coherence and social commentary, there is not much in the film, which essentially follows a line of episodes that alternate between female nudity and occasionally torture, and action scenes, with a few exceptions of a bit of melodrama, which is actually where the film falters. The action scenes however, are excellently designed, choreographed and shot, highlighting Shigeru Akatsuka’s cinematography, Isamu Ichida’s editing and Jiro Tomita’s production design in the best fashion. The ones Tiger Lily has to face her later comrades, the one where Omon enters the den of the yakuza and uses a set of metallic balls to track their movements after she has extinguished the lights, and the finale one that also has Sugawara participating before the rather tragic ending are truly memorable and actually carry the movie beyond its contextual shortcomings. The level of the production values and Ishii’s direction is also highlighted in a number of other scenes, with the gambling den one and the girl’s torturing being equally artful despite their intense exploitation elements. Furthermore, these scenes also establish the despicability of the villains, with Asao Koike in particular giving a very convincing performance as the main villain.
The effort at titillation is also evident, since most of the female characters appear (half) naked at some point or the other, although due to both their acting and their overall presentation, Eiko Nakamura as Tiger Lily, Junko Matsudaira as Onaka and Hiroko Fuji as Omon appear as cool and sensual as possible. The vulnerability the first shows in her interactions with Bunta Sugawara is among the film’s best traits.
“Red Silk Gambler” is a film that aims in entertainment through violence and nudity (not sex) and in that regard, succeeds to the fullest.
