Sada Abe
Mochizuki's 2005 film for the Toei Company studio, "Wet Red Thread" concerned two former prostitutes played by Saki Takaoka and Rei Yoshii looking to start a new life. After a gap of three years, Mochizuki directed another film for Toei, the erotic feature "Johnen: Love of Sada", an alternate look at Sada Abe, whose story had been previously treated in the pink film "A Woman Called Sada Abe" and more famously in Nagisa Oshima's "In the Realm of the Senses". In Mochizuki's version, a young photographer becomes obsessed with the married Sada (played by actress-dancer-singer Aya Sugimoto) and his affair with her brings back memories of a former life together with her. Sugimoto had created a scandal by her unfettered sexuality when starring in the 2004 S&amp;M cult film "Flower and Snake" and critic Mark Schilling compliments Mochizuki's style and casting for this film.