Rampo - 1994 - 8/10
AKA - The Mystery Of Rampo // 奥山バージョン

Wonderful Japanese arthouse/mystery/detective/erotic/ D: all of the above.
Knowledgeable viewers will note Rampo, as in Edogawa Rampo, and anticipate a wild ride.
Film opens as pre WWII official censors Rampo’s latest story (wife smothers invalid husband) as subversive.
Rampo’s agent, points out actual news article of woman whose husband died in exact manner as story.
The writer investigates, stalks, imagines a new story, merging fantasy with reality in the process.
Eventually his alter-ego, Detective Akechi, takes over and trails the woman to the castle of a mad marquis.
Lush score, gorgeous costumes, fabulous sets. Brilliant film that is constantly inventive and imaginative.

Note: Available on laserdisc and DVD, but both have issues.
Video on LD is soft. Subs on LD, however, were minimal and matched the theatrical release.
The MGM DVD is over-subbed, so one winds up constantly reading, rather than feasting on images.
Hopefully, this gets remastered one day.