The Pillow Book

The Pillow Book (1996)

  • 67% of critics liked it
    (36 reviews)

  • 77% of users liked it
    (12,823 ratings)

Peter Greenaway directed this elliptical and visually intricate tale of the far side of erotic and intellectual attraction. As a girl, Nagiko would receive a special gift each year from her father: a calligrapher (Ken Ogata) who would carefully paint a poem on her face, as her aunt (Hideko Yoshida)… More

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In Theaters
Jun 6, 1997 Wide
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Critic Reviews

  • David Stratton, Variety

    At first daunting but ultimately awesomely impressive and beautiful.

  • Derek Adams, Time Out

    A very intimate, sensual film, and a torrid, lurid melodrama, full of passion, jealousy, hatred and revenge.

  • Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

    A seductive and elegant story that combines a millennium of Japanese art and fetishes with the story of a neurotic modern woman who tells a lover: "Treat me like the pages of a book."

  • Desson Thomson, Washington Post

    Greenaway, whose mind is one of the most impressive, complicated organs that ever sat on the shoulders of a filmmaker, seems to be playing connect the dots to himself, almost dumbing himself down to be commercial.

  • Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

    Despite its arresting visual style, its wave after wave of creative and hypnotic images, "The Pillow Book," as its name hints, slowly but inexorably leads to sleep.

Read all 13 critic reviews

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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

  • Anthony L


    Great film, Peter Greenaway direction is beautiful! This is the first film were Hollywood took note of the young Ewan McGregor too but it's Vivian Wu who steals the show. *re-review* I just watched this again after 15 years and have completely changed my mind. I guess I was… More

  • Greg S


    A beautiful woman is obsessed with inking characters on human flesh, making herself and her lovers into living books. Gorgeous and sensual, with layered images and pictures framed inside of other pictures. Greenaway's painterly picture is a loving tribute both to calligraphy and… More

  • Emil K


    Peter Greenaway has always been interesting and innovative director. He has completely his own style as a filmmaker. In his long career there has been hits and misses, and The Pillow Book is definetly a miss. It is handsomely shot by Sacha Vierny and it has ambitious visual language… More

  • jay n


    Well it was different that's for sure.

  • Tsubaki S


    Everytime i try to get into this film i encounter a solid wall that won't let me pass. Vivian Wu should be in more movies, naked if possible.

Read all 8 featured audience ratings

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