Film Movement is preparing a Blu-ray release of Noboru Tanaka's
The Oldest Profession (1974), starring Meika Seri, Junko Miyashita, and Moeko Ezawa. The release is scheduled to arrive on the market later this month.
Description: 19-year-old Tome is a sex worker who draws in customers around the red-light district of Osaka. She lives with her mentally disabled younger brother, Saneo, and her mother, Yone, who is also still active as a sex worker despite being over 40 years old. One day, after receiving a request for a young girl, Tome goes to the designated inn. On arrival she encounters Yone, who is unable to find work. A few days later, Yone tells Tome that she is pregnant...
20 years have passed since the Prostitution Prevention Law was enacted, and the red-light district is now gone. Nonetheless, sex work as a profession persists. Noboru Tanaka's controversial film (also known as ""Lusty Beast Market"") portrays sorrowful but strong and resilient women who have no other choice but to earn a living by selling their bodies.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- ""Private Business & Public Obscenities"" video essay by Japanese cinema expert Jasper Sharp
- 16-page booklet with a written essay by Japan Society film programmer Alexander Fee
- In Japanese, with English subtitles
- REGION-A "LOCKED"