The original version ran 108 minutes. Producer
Anatole Dauman received Oshima's permission to recut the film, resulting in a shorter 102-minute edit. This version has been distributed theatrically in some countries (such as France) and is available on video in Australia, the UK, the United States, and France. The French DVD includes both versions (via seamless branching), while the U.S. Criterion DVD features the cut footage as an extra. The PAL releases run 97 minutes. This shorter version makes the following changes:
- An early scene in which Sada has sex with Ishida while playing a shamisen has been cut by about a minute and a half. In the original version, Sada seemingly goes unconscious and Ishida checks for her heartbeat.
- A brief shot (12 seconds) of Ishida and Sada on a bridge has been added to the scene in which the couple goes out walking at night.
- A later scene (in which the geishas assault one of their own with a dildo) is cut by 14 seconds to remove a shot of Ishida and Sada's faces in mid-copulation.
- An entire two-minute scene is deleted about an hour into the film. This scene features Sada and Ishida having sex behind a thin screen, while Ishida speaks of the "darkness" he feels inside Sada.
- The scene in which Sada first strangles Ishida is cut by just over one minute. In the short version, the scene ends when Ishida starts coughing and Sada releases his throat. In the original version, Ishida asks her to resume, which she does (only to stop when he begins coughing again).
- The scene in which Ishida becomes drowsy while having sex with Sada is edited differently. The original version has slightly different dialogue and has an additional minute of footage where Ishida actually does fall asleep for a short time.
- The scene in which Sada wakes up after her final night with Ishida is cut by one minute. The original version shows Sada lying on the floor and apparently panicking, walking around the room and opening doors for no obvious reason. The short version cuts straight from Sada waking up to the shot of her standing over Ishida's body.
