A not-so-nice couple kidnaps a woman and puts her in a box. Are they going to give her away as a present?
Woman in a Box is a Japanese movie that has a cool poster, which triggered my interest. I think I heard or read about the movie a long time ago in a Norwegian movie magazine under the cult section. And now was the time to watch this strange and filthy movie.
‘Filthy’ is the right word when describing Woman in a Box. A perverted couple, who loves to enjoy themselves—even in a car in the middle of the city while people are walking outside—kidnaps a woman who is trapped in the rain. After they capture her and put a box over her head, they take her to their apartment in the sewer, where they do what Japanese people usually do when they are enjoying themselves. That means a lot of bondage scenes, and these scenes last a long time.
Who these characters are is something the movie doesn’t explain. I’m unsure if it’s right to call Woman in a Box a movie, but the characters don’t have any depth. The kidnapped woman is a blank sheet, and what we learn about the couple is that they are sick perverts who should be locked away and never see the light again. Forget about the characters’ feelings, because they don’t have any—except for the couple’s twisted desire to be famous after the kidnapping and what they do to her.
Eventually, they put the poor woman in the box, who looks so stupid. They keep on tormenting her, but they are also oddly nice to her when they take her outside to the beach, where she can enjoy the water and the sunset while still locked inside her box.
I’m mostly used to Category III movies from Hong Kong, which, for the most part, have some dialogue and at least try to tell a story. These are also dirty movies, but Woman in a Box is a filthy, disgusting movie with a bizarre ending that I sort of like because of my sense of humor. I’m talking about the scene at the police station. That scene is so insane, and so is the ending of the movie. Just because of those two scenes, I couldn’t hate the movie since it suddenly showed us a sick and lighter side. I will never forget the chain and the cops. I guess the movie is trying to be symbolic of what the chain means, but, come on! I have to admit that I laughed pretty hard during this sick scene!
But the first hour was dark and disturbing, and it was too much for my taste. And remember, I have watched some of the grimmest Category III movies, which at least have stories to tell. But Woman in a Box is just filthy.
As a movie, Woman in a Box is for the curious ones who, like me, enjoy the craziness and humor in Category III Hong Kong movies. But at the same time, Woman in a Box is just a mean and filthy movie with some bizarre scenes that save it—if you have the same sense of humor as I do. After watching the movie, I didn’t know what to think of it. I felt that the first hour was a waste of time, and it’s only perverts who could enjoy it. But because of the last 20 minutes and the strangeness that happens, I can’t get the movie out of my mind.