Playful White Fingers – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 1972
Director: Tôru Murakawa
Writer: Tatsumi Kumashiro, Tôru Murakawa
Cast: Ichirô Araki, Hiroko Isayama, Gô Awazu, Hiroshi Gojô, Yôko Ishidô, Ei Shirai, Hajime Tanimoto

Release Date: October 13th, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 74 Minutes 57 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 18 (UK)
Sound: LPCM Mono Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region B
Retail Price: £15.00 (UK)

"When smalltown girl Yuki (Hiroko Isayama from Woods are Wet) arrives in the big city of Tokyo, she soon falls into bad company. Falling under the spell of the swaggeringly cocksure Taku (Ichiro Araki from Nagisa Oshima’s Sing a Song of Sex), she advances from petty pickpocketing and pilfering from bookstores to covering for much more major misdemeanours. It is not long before she discovers the old adage is true – that there is no honour among thieves." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "High-Definition Blu-Ray Presentation In 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio."

Playful White Fingers comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 34.9 GB

Feature: 20.1 GB

The source is in excellent shape; there is some very minor print debris that remains. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, black levels are strong, and image clarity and compression are solid.

Audio: 4.5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Japanese with removable English subtitles. The audio sounds clean, clear, and balanced, and range-wise ambient sounds are well represented.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a stills gallery with music from the film playing in the background (18 images - stills/poster), a theatrical trailer (1 minute 57 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Japanese with removable English subtitles), an introduction by Kei Chiba titled Touchy Feely (12 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with director Tôru Murakawa titled The Desire Within (40 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with Amber T and Jasper Sharp, removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings and a 16-page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled Scrap Cars and the Death of Affect written by Dimitri Ianni.

Summary:

Tôru Murakawa directed Playful White Fingers. He’s known for The Most Dangerous Game, The Killing Game, The Execution Game, The Resurrection of the Golden Wolf, and The Beast to Die. Playful White Fingers was the first of three romantic pornography films directed by Tôru Murakawa; the other two films are Melancholy Flesh Business: Sensuous Zone and Circuit of Sorrow.

A small-town girl who's recently arrived in Tokyo becomes involved with a group of thieves who corrupt her.

Although there is the required erotica sprinkled throughout Playful White Fingers, it does not resemble what one expects from a Nikkatsu romantic pornography film. The first thing that grabs you is how much time the narrative devotes to characters and exposition in general. Furthermore, Playful White Fingers has a guerrilla filmmaking style to it; so many moments happen in public places, and in the majority of instances, it does not appear that they had permission to film there. That said, one of Playful White Fingers' greatest strengths is how its sex scenes enhance the narrative and are not merely an afterthought.

The narrative revolves around a group of thieves who make their living by pickpocketing, and a girl named Yuki, who recently arrived in Tokyo, becomes involved with one of them. She becomes part of this group's inner circle after her boyfriend is arrested and sent away to prison. Although she goes along with them on their crime sprees, she never fully embraces a life of crime and only does it because of survival.

The cast is anchored by Hiroko Isayama, making her debut in the role of Yuki. She delivers an excellent performance that perfectly captures her character's innocence. She continues to act and is now into her sixth decade. Some of her notable films include Sex Hunter: Wet Target, Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41, Girl Boss: Escape from Reform School, Bad Reputation: Turf Wars, and Manhunt. Another performance of note is Ichirô Araki, who portrays Taku, a sunglasses-wearing pickpocket who becomes involved with Yuki after her boyfriend goes to prison. Besides acting, he’s composed film scores, notably Sex & Fury and Tokugawa Sex Ban.

Having seen Tôru Murakawa’s most celebrated films, it was fascinating to see where it all started and his origins as a filmmaker making Nikkatsu romantic pornography films. His ability to create visually arresting moments is already there, notably in a scene where Yuki and several other characters frolic in a bubble bath. Not to be overlooked are Shinsaku Himeda’s contributions as a cinematographer when discussing Playful White Fingers. He was a frequent collaborator of Shôhei Imamura, having worked with him on every film, from Endless Desire to The Pornographers and Vengeance Is Mine and Eijanaika. Ultimately, Playful White Fingers is a well-crafted film debut that plays out more like a melodrama than softcore erotica.

Playful White Fingers gets an exceptional release from 88 Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a trio of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer