RoboGeisha - Movie Review

RoboGeisha. Just the title is enough to make you pay attention. RoboGeisha is written and directed by Noboru Iguchi who gave us similar films like Machine Girl and Mutant Girls Squad. The films are a strange spoof on Japanese culture. Campy, quirky and unique. I find myself amused at these films in spite of their horrible short-comings. I don't think you could even compare them to B-Films because of the exceptional visual qualities.

Yoshie Kasuga (Aya Kiguchi) and Kikue (Hitome Hasebe) are sisters. Kikue is a Geisha, while Yoshie spends her days doing laundry and kow-towing to Kikue. The girls have a lot of emotional baggage. When a wealthy businessman, Kanai (Naoto Takenaka) takes an interest in Yoshie, the sibling rivalry swings into full gear. The pair begin to mechanize as part of Kanai's evil plan to rule the world.

Yoshie and Kikue are rude toward each other, but occasionally show affection. Their past has strained their relationship leaving competition and one-upmanship as their only bond. When Yoshie is sent on an assignment and learns that Kanai is planning to destroy Japan, she joins forces with a resistance and sets course to stop the evil Kanai. The showdown ends in a battle between sisters with the survival of Japan hanging in the balance.

I know what you are thinking. The plot sounds ridiculous. It gets worse. The plot starts out as a flashback, but never catches up with the initial scene. So the film ends up going down an entirely different past, seeming to forget where the film started. I think this was done on purpose. Iguchi films appear to be spoofs of the genre, exaggerating the flaws in other films as a way of creating a warped humor. This is demonstrated in his use of visual devices like anal-shukrans firing from robotic geishas and butt-swords. The character development is almost narrated rather than developed, but that is part of the fun. It is campy and silly fun. If splatterfest violence is your idea of fun.

How does one describe the acting in a film like this? It actually wasn't bad. If you consider the purpose of the film, the acting is intended to be a bit flat. It is. Takenaka, Kiguchi and Hasebe all do a solid job of creating characters that are quirky and strangely appealing. The martial arts sequences may have used doubles, but were well choreographed. If the actors did any of the fighting, then even better. It was a visually appealing film, with the acting and script playing second fiddle to the sight gags and fight sequences.

Visual Appeal. I think that sums up my interest in these films. I watched this film in HD and was impressed with the rich visual quality of the films. If they were shot on a budget, it doesn't show. While some of the gore elements are silly (buildings that bleed?) the fight scenes were well executed and included some pretty awesome special effects. Not over-the-top, but solid high quality effects to offset the cheesy intentionally deficient effects. The costumes and sets were also rich and detailed.

The version of RoboGeisha that I watched was unrated. The violence would likely earn it an R rating based on what I have seen in the past from the MPAA. The film contains no nudity, but does have a ribbon of sensuality laced throughout the film. The martial arts sequences are fun and even intense at times. There was also some strong language. This film was dubbed rather than sub-titled. That actually added to my enjoyment, giving it a Godzilla quality. But the dubbing also meant that the curse words were translated if that is an issue for anyone. I would suggest teen audiences and above can handle this film.

RoboGeisha is an odd film to categorize. It will find a niche following. Everyone else will think it is ridiculous. The continuity fails in the form of a forgotten flashback, the dialogue is flat, the character development is told to the audience by characters who set up their own back-stories. Basically, the film fails many of my own cinematic tests. But the visual appeal is striking, the fight sequences entertaining and the concept intriguing. I view this film as a spoof, which increased my enjoyment. It is better than the reference spoofs that National Lampoon keeps churning out. Instead, it is a fun-filled campy adventure that is visually rich and silly fun to watch. Barely recommended and only for a specific audience. This film is not for everyone. Gory, campy and silly. 5.5/10.

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