Peter Greenaway: Eight and a Half Women

Eight and a half women is a laconic black comedy, an examination of the age-old phenomenon of male sexual fantasy, its roots and its consequences. A modest rich Swiss businessman, whose wealth comes from the eight and a half Japanese pachinko parlours he owns, lives in Geneva. His son lives in Kyoto and is fascinated by earthquakes. When the father's much-loved wife dies, the son tries hard to help his father overcome his grief by introducing him to, among other things, Fellini films, awakening in him a new desire for women. To accomodate this, the two of them create their own domestic harem. The film tells the story of the bordello, and its eight and a half women, that lasts three years before its dissolution and final destruction in an earthquake.