A ‘cursed masterpiece’ is simply another name for a work too far ahead of its time. In 1973, Mushi Production unveiled Belladonna of Sadness, an audacious work of avant-garde animation for adults. Based on Michelet’s La Sorcière, the film follows Jeanne, who, after being violated by a feudal lord on her wedding night, makes a pact with the devil and is reborn as a witch. Its radical visual approach - the camera gliding across static watercolor paintings - and Fukai Kuni’s sensual artwork, reminiscent of Klimt and Beardsley, challenge the very definition of animation. Adding to its allure, acclaimed actor Nakadai Tatsuya voices the devil, while a psychedelic rock score washes over the images. Conceived as a last gamble by Mushi Production, which was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy after Tezuka Osamu’s departure, the film was a box-office disaster, and the studio ultimately shut its doors. Yet this commercial failure was invited to the Berlin Film Festival upon its release and, decades later, was revived with a 4K restoration in 2016, becoming a cult classic abroad before it found recognition in Japan. This is a rare opportunity to experience on the big screen its provocative vision of transforming a history of female suffering into a myth of liberation. (SONG Kyung-won)