Nurse Diary: Beast Afternoon

A doctor develops a new scientific breakthrough in female psychotherapy with the discovery of the “Dream Ring,” a device that is inserted into a woman to record her thoughts and dreams. But, one dark and stormy night, the doctor and his assistant end up dead… hanging by ropes from the rafters of their lab. The lovely Reiko suffers from a condition known as “genophobia” (the fear of sexual intercourse), so she is admitted to the Tachibana Clinic for observation. Another group of doctors have the “Dream Ring” device and use it on Reiko to analyze her wildly erotic, and violent, dreams and nightmares. The clinic doctors have more sinister reasons to test this device on Reiko, however, and secretly put her under hypnosis so that the ring is activated at any time she hears the sound of a bell. Can she escape the evil doctors’ experiment and, even if she does, who is that strange person, dressed all in black, following her around?

Directed by Naosuke Kurosawa, Nurse Diary: Beast Afternoon leans on a strong ensemble — Maiko Kazama, Jun Miho, Eimei Esumi — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about crime titles of 1982.