A kind of "bildungsroman " for the 20th century.

Great film. "Why should I feel sorry for a thug like him?" she asks herself. But it's much worse than that. Again and again she goes back to her rapist... and all we can do is passively sit there watching this terrible "love affair" unfold. But to judge her for it makes us part of the machine that's oppressing her. She is constantly being belittled and exploited -sexually and domestically- so maybe she just wants to believe she is as needed and holy as the madman makes her feel. All in all, her grandma's spirit makes everything turn out fine for our heroine, who starts to assert herself and fight back by the end of the story. So is the movie empowering? Is it feminist? Not exactly. It's a bit too icky for that. But it wouldn't be Imamura -the master of beastly poetry- if it wasn't.

Good essay on this:
https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/1151-intentions-of-murder-eros-and-civilization

"Intentions Of Murder"

Pigs, Pimps and Prostitutes Box Set.