| Director | Yasuzō Masumura |
|---|---|
| Genre | drama film, erotic thriller, film based on literature |
| Runtime | 84 min |
| Country | Japan |
Aki Shima, a fashion model known for her provocative, often S&M-themed photographs, attends a gallery exhibition of her work. She witnesses a blind sculptor, Michio Sofu, touching a statue of her nude form with unsettling intensity. Aki feels as if his touch is physically on her own body, and leaves, uncomfortable. Michio later kidnaps Aki from her apartment, assisted by his overly protective and emotionally incestuous mother, Shino. Michio takes Aki to the studio he has fashioned out of a massive, abandoned warehouse located far outside the city.
Aki awakens in Michio's surreal, custom-built "temple of erotic touch." The walls, floor, and ceiling are covered with large, disproportionate sculptures of female body parts. The centerpiece is a pair of monumental, upholstered nude female figures, which Michio uses for his tactile experiments. Michio explains that he was born blind and "sees" the world entirely through touch and sensory memory. He intends to use Aki as his muse to create a new, transcendent form of "sensory art."
Initially, Aki refuses and attempts to escape. Michio forces her to pose so he can sculpt her, studying her body through touch. Their relationship quickly becomes a complex psychological power struggle between captor and captive. Aki attempts to gain control through seduction, taking advantage of Michio's profound inexperience and vulnerability, which stems from his reliance on his mother.
Aki's ploy succeeds, shifting Michio's focus from sculpting her likeness to obsessing over her living body. A jealous Shino tries to secretly let Aki leave, but they are discovered by Michio, leading to a violent confrontation between the three in which Shino is accidentally killed. As Michio mourns over her body, Aki attempts to escape, but Michio recaptures her and angrily berates her for manipulating him. To prove that he is not a "mama's boy" as Aki had called him, he rapes her. Several days later, Michio and Aki bury Shino beneath the studio floor.
Michio finishes his sculpture, and Aki gradually starts developing genuine affection for him. Isolated from the outside world and deprived of natural light, Aki begins to lose her own sense of sight and finally understands the ecstasy Michio experiences from his acute sense of touch. Increasingly hungry for sensation, they engage in more violent acts, eventually weakening their bodies to the brink of death. With the last of her energy, Aki begs Michio to sever all her limbs. Michio complies, dismembering Aki before fatally stabbing himself. In a final voiceover, Aki declares that those who become obsessed with the world of touch can only expect to meet a gruesome end.