Straße der Lust

Not a lot of joy in this one and my DVD seems to be made from video that doesn't work too well in the dark. This is supposedly set on the eve of a new law outlawing prostitution but you would not know it and I had purposefully arranged to watch it the night after, Kenji Mizoguchi's 'Street of Shame', aka: 'Akasen Chitai' which is very much based on the days before. So perhaps my slight disappointment with this film is the inevitable comparison. Nevertheless this is colourful and quirky with drawings, text on screen and songs, but mostly sex and most of that rather awkward and difficult. Much emphasis on the loutish men and how they can't, 'do it right'. Some uncomfortable moments, such as the virgin being broken in wincingly by, I assume, the main man of the brothel, although I don't recall seeing him before and he certainly wasn't the one who recommended the girls they squat over the fire before a client.