Thursday, November 18, 2010
Michael Allen
3/5
Directed by Yoshihiro Nishimura and Naoyuki Tomomatsu.
Written by Yoshihiro Nishimura.
The horror genre films coming out of Japan are usually breathtakingly imaginative. They can range from delivering genuine chills to just being laughable. But for people seeking the latter, Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl hits comedic heights dead-on. The product is entertaining in a weird kind of way, but was that what director Yoshihiro Nishimura (Tokyo Gore Police) intended?
He tries to look into the sub-cultures that often exist within Japanese high schools. But for some viewers, what he tries to do is treading a very fine line of what is considered satire. What he explores in wrist-cutting and Ganguro culture is very questionable. And the humour and low-budget special effects borrows a page from the Evil Dead movies, complete with the enough cheesy performances to either make one cringe or think they're watching a Troma product. For its entertainment value, it puts the nail in the coffin. Do not expect Bruce Campbell to come save the day in a cliché driven film.
This movie slowly traps you into its craziness because of where the film is heading and there is no escape. It's silly and delivers chortles more often than not. For the anime enthusiast, there's some fan service to keep one’s eyes on the screen. Nearly all the performers are hamming it up for the camera. And everyone but Mizushima (Takumi Saito) are in on the joke.
He's the reluctant soft-spoken hero and the center of attention of two girls—a quirky Keiko (Eri Otoguro), who's the daughter of the vice-principal with a "Jekyll and Hyde" personality, and Monami (Yukie Kawamura), who's a transfer student with a mysterious past.
The ensuing love triangle is very atypical for many Japanese animations—very ho hum—but when attention for Mizushima reaches new heights, the shift towards the climatic battle is wrought with a merry tribute to an older Hollywood tradition straight out of Universal Studios' Golden Age. The vampiric Monami faces off against Frankenstein's monster. While there’s an Igor, there's no Wolfman, but is there anything remotely like that in Japanese culture? Shapeshifters are prevalent in Japanese folklore, but this film is not one that borrows from its own culture. It’s a product that really isn’t all that original. Toss in the prerequisite Tokyo Tower into the climatic Robot Chicken inspired ending, all one gets is a frightful reminder of how the anime, X:1999 was introduced to North American theatres more than a decade ago.
Thankfully, there's no dub track, otherwise there would be plenty of ear aches to follow.
More details on the film are here w/trailer:
Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl
This title has been available since October 19th and the posters are 11 x 17 and 27 x 40:
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Posted in: 2010,animation,anime,anime movie review,bruce campbell,evil dead,film review,japanese,movie review,release date,vampire girl vs. frankenstein girl
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