The Kyoto Connection (1973)

Wonderful Movie

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

In this East meets West tale of abduction, rape, and eventual love, a desperate Japanese loner hits the jackpot when 21-year-old Swedish stunner Ingrid Jakobsson (the gorgeous Christina Lindberg) mistakenly gets into his car at the airport. Somewhat taken aback by this, but realising the golden opportunity that fate has handed to him, the lank haired loser does what any sex-obsessed Pinku pervert would do in the same situation: he takes her to his home and holds her hostage, using her to get some practical experience under his belt.Of course, Ingrid ain't too happy about her situation at first, but after an escape attempt, which results in her being gang-banged by crazy revolutionaries in a nightclub, she becomes more appreciative of the tenderness shown to her by her original abuser—so much so, in fact, that when he finds her again and takes her back home, the lovely lady falls in love with the lucky lad (a case of what I believe is technically termed Stockholm Syndrome). What a shame then that Ingrid is being hunted by gangsters, keen to get their hands on the dope that she was smuggling inside her suitcase...As far as Pinkus go, this one is little lighter than many, with none of the extreme torture or humiliation that one can find in the many examples of the genre. But as 'interesting' as it would have been to see doe-eyed Lindberg involved in such deviancy, Journey to Japan still manages to be a thoroughly entertaining watch simply because the star looks so absolutely scrummy throughout, spending much of the film naked and bound in ropes and chains, which—let's face it—is precisely how her fans want her.

Journey To Japan is a story about a cab driver,played by Ichiro Araki, and his journey of his relationship with the Swedish tourist,played magnificently by the sexy and voluptuous Christina Lindberg, upon her arrival to the airport. It started from violence which eventually ended up to that of a domestic bliss. It also shows his awakening as he realizes that sex is not only a means to gain pleasure but also that of love and intimacy. Some posters have found this film a waste of time.But from a psychological perspective, it gives the viewer a realization that sex is a powerful tool of communication and means of forming relationships despite of the obstacles presented such as language barrier and difference in culture. It was definitely a soft-core porn film but the adult sexual content was necessary to emphasize the development of the relationship between the Japanese male and the Swedish female from a violent one (rape) to that of a loving and intimate one (sex scenes). It was not a means to fulfill the viewer's sexual fantasies just like hardcore porn films would do. A must-see not only for Christina's fans but for people who want a different kind of film provides sensible themes about sex.

Swedish sex star Christina Lindberg never appeared in any truly graphic sex films, but in her home country she frequently appeared in "roughie"-type films where she was raped, tied up, and otherwise abused. Perhaps it's not too surprising therefore that she ended up making a couple "pink" films in Japan where they really specialized in this kind of thing in the 1970's. Lindberg plays a Swedish porn star who comes to work in Japan(not much of a stretch there). She accidentally gets in the wrong cab with socially maladjusted, virginal cabdriver. Due to misunderstandings as a result the language barrier, she ends up at his apartment where he rapes her. Then he ties her up, photographs her naked and bound, and rapes her some more. She eventually develops Stockholm syndrome and seems to fall in love with her captor, at first perhaps just to get the upper hand, but later quite genuinely (after another horrible misadventure at a Yakuza-owned nightclub).Obviously, this film is very "politically incorrect" and definitely not for everyone. People who cannot distinguish between reality and ripe and ridiculous exploitation like this (whether they be sexual deviants or hypersensitive feminist-types) will definitely want to avoid this movie. Relatively speaking, Lindberg is actually treated with quite a bit of respect compared to what Japanese actresses usually had to suffer in "pink" films like this. The rape and bondage scenes are nowhere near as graphic as they could be, and since this is Japanese rather than Swedish there's not even the usual full-frontal nudity (but plenty of shots of Lindberg's impressive boobs and butt).I didn't like this as much as "Sex and Fury", Lindberg's other venture into the Japenese "pink" films where she was teamed with sexy Japanese actress Reiko Ikke, and there was actually something of a plot. But at least there not trying to pass her off "British" here (Lindberg spoke English even less fluently than most Japanese do). I've seen almost all of Lindberg's films and a good deal of Japanese "pink" films and this one is fairly typical of both.

****SPOILERS**** ...My continuing quest to see every film that Sweden's stunningly beautiful Christina Lindberg ever made has brought me here to this extremely rare film. Sadly again, the version of the film I have has no English subtitles.The plot: Christina, on arriving in Japan, acquaints a Japanese man at the airport who looks like a sap. He takes her to his apartment where he brutally rapes her and keeps her hostage and bound in chains. Christina's alluring beauty eventually enchants the rapist and he is soon consulting his 'How to Stimulate a Woman' sex book in an effort to please her... Of course, our girl exploits this weakness and manages to escape. She then finds her way to a nightclub and to cut a long story short is ganged-banged by some odd-looking characters. Christina is not having a lot of luck is she, poor girl! The Japanese man (who seems to have fallen in love with her), finds her walking the streets barefooted and in a terrible state. So he takes her back to his place and tries his best to bring her out of her depressive state of mind but with no avail. He eventually orders her to go but it seems Christina has developed a 'Stockholm Syndrome' and refuses to leave. They then live together quite happily until some gangsters arrive to shatter their domestic bliss...Listen, who cares about the ridiculous plot as most will only be watching this film to see Christina in action. Now on to the important stuff. There is some soft-core sex on show and a couple of rape scenes which are not particularly explicit. We get plenty of fantastic close-ups of Christina's adorable face. I don't think she has ever looked more enchanting as she does in this film -- amazing! 'Journey to Japan' its English title is also quite artistically shot which is a plus point. The bottom line: For die-hard Christina Lindberg fans this is a must-see film. For anyone else? Why are you even reading this!