Kokuei Company

1st Logo (1965)


Nickname: "The Early Kokuei"

Logo: On a black background, we see a white outlined circle with kanji (in a compressed style) and the Japanese name meaning "DISTRIBUTED BY KOKUEI COMPANY" in white below.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Appears on Koji Wakamatsu's 歪んだ関係.

2nd Logo (1966-1990s?)
Logo: We see a black screen, which then gets engulfed by live-action fire. As the fire covers up the whole screen, a circular logo (like Toho) with Kanji and the Japanese name below rises up to the center.

Technique: The fire, the logo rising up.

Music/Sounds: A low-pitched, menacing theme that sounds like a dark ambient song (even if dark ambient didn't exist at the time).

Availability: Rare, bordering on extinct. Seen on their pink film releases such as The Black Snow, Sex Family and Tears of Ecstasy.

Legacy: The whole thing looks very infernal and it has ominous music, which altogether may unnerve some people.