With the recent closure of some of the last “pink eiga” movie theaters (notably in Shinjuku and Ueno), the production companies behind the softcore porn efforts shown there are attempting to find new business. OP Pictures is trying its hand at making more mainstream movies. Last month, it released Yaru Otoko, a piece about a violent man meeting an abused woman, and Yūwaku Yūjo: Sora to Shido, a tale of two women working in the sex industry.

However, only in Japan could the filmmakers take the latter story and turn it into a light, nostalgic tale of neighborly sweetness and yearning for the past. Takuma (Kasumi Kaho) and Shīna (Rika) toil at the Do-Re-Mi sex shop (essentially a brothel), but the building, and much of the area, is under threat of redevelopment. The women reach out to the community, who seem to accept them wholeheartedly, to face this challenge.

Making this a light, community-oriented, and corny tale about prostitutes saving the neighborhood is more than a little quizzical. Nonetheless it’s an interesting cultural experience. (80 min). 

Although no longer available in theaters, watch out for future OP Pictures releases at www.okura-movie.co.jp/op.