3D Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstasy Arrives in New York Theaters in August

Sex Goddess Ruizhu (Saori Hara) with entourage.

A few months ago we told you about 3D Sex and Zen, the Hong Kong erotica film that was banned in China and made box office magic in Asia and Australia. The ancient Chinese text "adaptation"/soft-core/high tech/ comedy/period piece is now coming, uncut, to the United States, and will open in New York in August.

3D technology, New Yorkers thank you for mainstreaming that dying past-time: communal, public consumption of pornography. All under the guises of "innovation," "novelty," and "foreign film," of course. We'd attached the fairly tame Hong Kong trailer to our original post, and the North America trailer's pretty much identical. So instead, some stills, after the jump (slightly NSFW).

The Guardian seems to think 3D needs saving and porn is the new way forward. On why Sex & Zen has had such a great box office run, the article describes scenes from the film, in particular a "four-foot willy," suspension sex, a severed horse penis, and the like, then states, "...And that pretty much sums up where 3D has been going wrong all this time -- however good the films are, they're not ridiculous Chinese 3D sex films."

But, according to a Variety review, "The usual gimmicks are deployed -- flying knives, speeding bullets and so on -- but given that the pic bills itself as "the world's first 3D erotic film," it's reasonably restrained when it comes to technologically enhanced sexual imagery."

A friend who'd seen the movie in Hong Kong put it this way (in Cantonese): "The 3D effects are used more for the fight scenes, and not so much for the 'porny' parts. So it was a little boring."

But we bet you'll go see it anyway.

Starts August 19th at Village East Cinema and City Cinema East 86th St. No one under 18 will be admitted.

Wei Yangsheng (Hiro Hayama), a scholar on a quest to become a better lover to his wife, consults with master surgeons.

Here's the Sex Goddess and the Scholar on..a glowing stone?

The Elder of Ultimate Bliss (Vonnie Lu). Looking pretty good for an "elder" of anything.