Nice effects though.

Fantastic!

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

This film begins during the age of the samurai on a small, rocky piece of land known as Nenbutsu Island which is located somewhere in the Shiranui Sea and serves as a prison for female convicts. As the story unfolds, a small boat arrives carrying a samurai by the name of "Santarô Isahaya" (Masakazu Tamura) and two female prisoners named "Okiyo" (Maya Kitajima) and "Osen" (Hiroko Sakurai). Although Okiyo appears to be somewhat rebellious, the warden "Gunjûrô Segoshi" (Kazuo Katô) is more concerned about the fact that Isahaya also happens to be the son of the Governor of Nagasaki who has a great deal of influence. But first the most ranking prisoner named "Omasa" (Yuki Aresa) has to impose discipline on the two new convicts in order to let them know that she is the boss. But she also has a hidden agenda which includes getting off the island and she is willing to do anything to accomplish that goal. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was an okay "Women-in-Prison" movie which managed to capture the brutality one might expect from a film of this sort without straying too far out-of-bounds. Yet, while I certainly appreciated that fact, I must admit it could have used a bit more suspense, drama and character development. That being said, I have rated this film accordingly. Average.

DECAPITATION ISLAND is a pretty solid pinku entry that is a bit reminiscent of the more famous FEMALE SCORPION/FEMALE CONVICT SCORPION films, though not as in-depth or quite as memorable. lacking a bit in the sleaze department, this one isn't at the top of my favorites list as far as pinku films are concerned, but the storyline is pretty strong which makes up some points in my book...Exiled women are kept on an island that is overseen by a group of guards who pretty much leave the women alone as long as they don't start actin' up. If they do, they may be treated to some steam-room or hot-oil torture. Of course there are also ranks within the female prisoner populace, and hard-ass new-arrivals cause some dissension amongst the "leaders". Eventually the new girls earn some respect but matters are complicated further by the arrival of a new guard - the disgraced son of an Official who was deemed incapable of performing his regular duties, and also by the out-break of the Plague that threatens to decimate the islands small population - resulting in feverish back-stabbing and escape attempts...A well-written storyline carries DECAPITATION ISLAND for the most part, as the typical rape-and-sleaze oriented material so common to most pinku films is relatively non-existent in this film. I tend to prefer the "rougher" entries in the genre, but this one was entertaining enough to keep my interest without being an all-out trash-fest. Worth checking out for die-hard pinku fans, but those that only dig the more twisted entries will probably be disappointed...7/10