Bathhouse Companions 4
Timing and Translation by Patonyan


Can we ever get enough of bacchanalian rowdiness found in JAV bathhouse movies?  The short answer is NEVER.  The long answer is ABSOLUTELY NEVER.  I think among the many genres JAV is known for, one can say movies that take place in and around bathhouses are the most unique.  Sure, many other really odd things have been produced over the years, but a good deal of that can and has been emulated in the west with varying levels of success.  The bathhouse--the ryokan, really--remains one of those things so uniquely Japanese I don't see production companies in other parts of the world emulating it (or even feeling the need to do so).

It's a cultural thing, really.  Company outings at upscale bathhouses have always been common.  Even today many an old man association has their meetings (read: parties) there.  It's a safe bet that sometimes to liven thing up, these parties have non-affiliated and very attractive women in attendance.  Think of it as mobile hostesses doing their things here and there on a nightly basis.  This is the theme that V&R adopts in what sadly is their final iteration of the legendary BATHHOUSE COMPANIONS series.  We see a quintet of beautiful and busty Japanese women helmed by the uber-legendary YUMI KAZAMA work their full-figured (for JAV stars at least) magic on a group of horny sex-deprived salarymen on the company trip to end all company trips.

The biggest change in BATHHOUSE COMPANIONS 4 is a slightly improved camera.  This was still shot shortly before studios started doing their thing in FHD, but the picture looks a lot more modern than the three movie that precede it.  We also get YUMI KAZAMA in arguably her peak condition.  It's crazy to realize she not only still active today, but may be the longest active JAV star ever (she debuted in the 90's!).  The play itself is par for the course.  On one hand, nothing really new is introduced (a sound reason why they perhaps decided to stop filming more after this one), but the play itself remains spectacular as always.

It's not all fun and games.  I can't finish out a review with a few gripes and the biggest is just like in the third BATHHOUSE COMPANIONS, the orgy portion is cut short so all those temporary couples can finish their things in two's and there's.  Let me tell you:  there's very few good reasons to halt an orgy in full swing and embarrassed participants is not one of them!  Given all the group sex that came before in this movie, you'd think they'd all finish the act together.  Beyond that, the final sex scene has some microphone issues so we apologize about any subtitling issues then.  Mosaic is gold standard for JAV's Golden Age:  not too thick and relatively form-fitting.  If you're a fan of curvy Japanese women doing very audacious things in their birthday suits in a Japanese bathhouse, BATHHOUSE COMPANIONS 4 should tick most boxes.