Oshima's Outlaw Sixties (5-DVD)

Often called the Godard of the East, Japanese director Nagisa Oshima was one of the most provocative film artists of the twentieth century, and his works challenged and shocked the cinematic world for decades. Following his rise to prominence at Shochiku, Oshima struck out to form his own production company, Sozo-sha, in the early sixties. That move ushered in the prolific period of his career that gave birth to the five films collected here. Unsurprisingly, this studio renegade was fascinated by stories of outsiders -- serial killers, rabid hedonists, and stowaway misfits are just some of the social castoffs you'll meet in these audacious, cerebral entries in the New Wave surge that made Japan a hub of truly daredevil moviemaking.

Pleasures of the Flesh (1965) - A corrupt businessman blackmails the lovelorn reprobate Atsushi into watching over his suitcase full of embezzled cash while he serves a jail sentence. Rather than wait for the man to retrieve his money, however, Atsushi decides to spend it all in one libidinous rush.

Violence at Noon (1966) - Containing more than two thousand cuts and a wealth of inventive widescreen compositions, this coolly fragmented character study is a mesmerizing investigation of criminality and social decay.

Sing a Song of Sex (1967) - Four sexually hungry high school students prepare for their university entrance exams in Oshima's hypnotic, free-form depiction of generational political apathy, featuring stunning color cinematography.

Japanese Summer: Double Suicide (1967) - A sex-obsessed young woman, a suicidal man she meets on the street, a gun-crazy wannabe gangster -- these are just three of the irrational, oddball anarchists trapped in an underground hideaway in Oshima's devilish, absurdist film.

Three Resurrected Drunkards (1968) - A trio of bumbling young men frolics at the beach. While they swim, their clothes are stolen and replaced with new outfits. Donning these, they are mistaken for undocumented Koreans and end up on the run from comically outraged authorities.

The Criterion Collection's ECLIPSE series offers monthly installments of lost or overlooked film classics, themed by director, with several titles per package. Volume 21, OSHIMA'S OUTLAW SIXTIES, hones in on the man commonly dubbed "The Godard of the East," Nagisa Oshima (b. 1932). It features five seldom-seen Oshima titles produced between 1965 and 1968, all but one of which had never been commercially issued on video prior to the arrival of this set. The set begins with the 1965 PLEASURES OF FLESH, a drama about a man who tries to use embezzled money to satisfy his carnal lusts. The second film in the set, 1966's VIOLENCE AT NOON, follows the regression of one misguided and deeply confused man from political idealist to serial killer. The third film, 1967's SING A SONG OF SEX, witnesses a quartet of students falling into sexual deviance and death just prior to taking their final exams. The fourth title, JAPANESE SUMMER: DOUBLE SUICIDE, also known as NIGHT OF THE KILLER, follows a sex addict and a would-be suicide who grow entangled with organized crime. Finally, 1968's THREE RESURRECTED DRUNKARDS, follows three innocent Japanese citizens who embark on a pleasant day at the beach but get mistaken for illegal Korean immigrants.