 |
| You want me to put the sword where?! |
There’s not much by way of major spoilers so I’ll just tell you what this is about: after a failed military coup, an Imperial Japanese Army officer and his wife both kill themselves as per the dictates of ritual suicide. In other words: seppuku. That’s an almost unbelievably agonizing slice across the belly and—stamina willing—a final cross cut from the apex of the rib cage to the groin.
Now, I’m oft-conflicted about admiring a work such as Mishima’s. On the one hand, artistically, you can’t really argue with it. And though it’s short—running at almost half an hour—I’m compelled to laud the complexity which arises through that simplicity.
