Female Prisoner 701: Scorpion
| Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion | |
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Japanese film poster
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| Directed by | Shunya Itō |
| Produced by | Kineo Yoshimine |
| Written by |
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| Based on |
Scorpion by Tōru Shinohara |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Shunsuke Kikuchi |
| Cinematography | Hanjiro Nakazawa |
| Edited by | Osamu Tanaka |
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Production
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Release date
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Running time
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87 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (女囚701号/さそり Joshū Nana-maru-ichi Gō / Sasori) is a 1972 Japanese women in prison film made by Toei Company. It stars Meiko Kaji and was Shunya Itō's first film as a director. The film is based on a comic by Tōru Shinohara. The film was followed by several sequels, including Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 and Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable, and has also been remade several times.
Nami Matsushima (Meiko Kaji) is set up by her boyfriend, a crooked police detective named Sugimi (Isao Natsuyagi) to win favor with the Yakuza. She is raped by several drug dealers. She makes a failed attempt to stab Sugimi on the steps of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Headquarters. She is sentenced to do hard time in a women's prison. Matsushima is given the number 701. The prison is run by sadistic and lecherous male guards. The prisoners are forced to walk up and down a stair-like contraption naked with male guards watching from below. While in prison Matsushima meets inmates like Yuki Kida (Yayoi Watanabe) who was convicted for fraud and theft, Otsuka (Akemi Negishi), jailed for burglary and extortion, and Katagiri (Rie Yokoyama) who was impounded for arson and illegally disposing of a body. Outside the prison, Sugimi and the Japanese mafia orchestrate a plan in which Matsushima will succumb to an "accidental" death in prison. They enlist the help of Katagiri, pulling on her ties to both Sugimi and the mafia, and quickly set their plan in motion.
Matsushima is attacked in the shower but defends herself, wounding the attacker. She is punished by being held bound by ropes in solitary confinement. A group of trustees including Katagiri torments her. One of them torments her by pouring hot soup on her. Matsushima is able to trip the trustee and make her spill the vat of hot soup over herself, causing horrible burns. Matsushima is forced to dig dirt holes for two consecutive days and nights. She kills a woman who attempts to attack her during this digging by tripping her and breaking her neck. Matsushima is hung and tied from the ceiling while being beaten by her fellow prisoners.
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Wikipedia