A young heroic samurai type is apparently on assignment at a woman's prison. A fire alarm sounds and our hero runs to the scene where officials are bringing out a bound chick. He obviously knew her from earlier times. She is led away and he marks down events in his journal. She is bound, topless and has water splashed on her and this is only the prologue. She has been brought before a magistrate on her knees and is led away. Placed in a large cell with numerous female inmates who strip her and force her to be submissive to the honcho bitch in the cell by caning her ass. The samurai visits the folks whose building was burned to find out why the chick would commit arson. They turn out to be snotty elite assholes.

The chick is taken before the magistrate for questioning. Her top is yanked down and she's bound. As she sits, they whack her back with a wet wooden pole. When they finish she's tossed back in the cell. The other females spit in her wounds. The samurai visits and she tells him of abuse at the hands of her accusers. He is pissed. Her father comes to him and relates the entire tale. The snotty bitch took out all her frustration on this chick who found out the bitch was doing some other dude. Samurai tries to talk to the magistrate about the case without success. The chick is back for questioning. Her top is pulled down as she sits on the floor. They bind her, place cords around her neck and tie them to her ankles. They push her ankles up to her breasts and secure them. Bent forward, weights are placed on her back. Looks like she has confessed. She is back in the cell and the samurai comes to chat. She seems resigned to her fate. Next morning, she has been bound topless in a wicker frame attached to a stake with wood piled around. As her father and the samurai look on she is executed by burning. That night on a street, the snotty bitch and her husband are slain by a sword wielding unrecognizable samurai type - could that be our boy?

In the rain a chick is dragged to some officials. She is apparently a Christian during a time of persecution and she's hustled off to prison. She is found dead in her cell so the samurai visits a girl who was in jail with her. In flashback she is brought for interrogation, her top is removed and she is placed on the horse AOH. Weights are tied to her ankles. There's some more chatting and she's now in a face down horizontal suspension, wrists tied to ankles. They run a pole across her back and pull down. She starts to sing so they brand a cross on her forehead. Next morning she's dead. The samurai confronts her accuser at a pond and starts to kill him. The chick's ghost appears and urges mercy so he lets the guy go. He makes more entries in his journal.

The samurai is now walking through town and meets a little hottie asking directions. They hit it off, eat some melon and she goes on her way. At some later time, she's thrown into the women's cell where she's stripped and gets her ass whacked. The samurai is interviewing a man and woman. Looks like the chick worked for them and stole something. She is then brought for interrogation bound and forced to kneel on that sharp series of metal ridges thing the Japanese like so much. Weights are placed on her lap and she passes out only to be revived with water. After the samurai chats with some more folks the chick is bound wrists behind and hoisted in the air by her wrists. Her ankles are tied with weights added. They add more weight by stepping on the stones. In a last interrogation she has flashbacks to happier times. She turns to the samurai for help but he refuses to look at her and she confesses. In her cell the samurai stops by for a last visit. Next morning she is led from her cell, bound wrists behind and upper arms and body. She is taken to a mat in front of a freshly dug pit where she removes her slippers and kneels. She looks at the samurai, bows and gives him a slight smile. She is blindfolded, bent forward and beheaded. The samurai finishes up his journal. The End

Movie Pluses - the actresses were very convincing, the torture and execution scenes well staged. For a mainstream film I thought it delivered pretty well on Gimp moments. And it was easy to follow even though I speak no Japanese.

Movie Minuses - Gimp scenes were a little short for my tastes and as mainstream there was too much chatting.