A contemporary multi-cultural look at a modern multi-cultural film: 'Belladonna of Sadness'

This article would work well for someone who is interested in Japanese erotica adapted from a French novel. 'Belladonna of Sadness' (1973) by Mushi Production; the French novel 'La Sorcière' (1862, Jules Michelet) was the source material.

This epic film was created by men, and originally written by a man nearly 100 years prior; how does an 2016 American interpretation of a 1970's Japanese adaptation of a 1860's French idea find a story of women's awakening? Meaning, across the ages and cultures, how does a person now and here see this woman's sexual awakening and how it translates to her strength as a woman? How does this epic play now, and how does the retelling in film expands itself from the classic novel?