Movie Review: High-Kick Girl

High-Kick Girl

Japan, 2009

Genre: Action

81 minutes

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1406157/

A high school girl training in karate seeks out stronger opponents to test her fighting skills on, only to become involved in a revenge plot by a gang of thugs against her master.

In addition to Hong Kong, Japan now faces stiff competition from Korea and Thailand when it comes to producing martial arts movies and martial arts superstars. High-Kick Girl introduces Rina Takeda, a young Japanese idol who holds a black belt in Ryukyu Shorin-Ryu Karate, hoping to develop her new film career into the next action franchise. However, with incredibly low standards of production quality going into this project, I would be surprised if anyone even bothers to learn the actress’s name, much less watch her next movie. With poor writing, bland performances, and altogether lackluster direction, High-Kick Girl is a boring, contrived, and visual mess, failing in just about every aspect of the genre and film-making as a whole.

The script’s pacing has no sense of drama or tension whatsoever, and none of the dialogue is captivating at all. We are thrust from one event to the next without any idea of who is important, what is happening, or why any of the characters are doing anything at all. Coupled with single-note performances by the entire cast, the movie drags on for the entire hour and twenty minutes that it spans. Normally, these sorts of things would be tolerable in an action movie, which provides the real entertainment in between the moments of bland plot forwarding. However, in the case of High-Kick Girl, the failures of production penetrate every level of the film, leaving nothing worth watching. With ridiculously excessive amounts of slow-motion, the camera work does nothing but emphasize the terrible choreography and execution by the stunt team. Often, they will repeat entire stunt sequences in slow-motion, using the exact same angle as we’ve just seen. This pointless gesture just pads the movie further and makes it obvious how little material the team actually had to work with. Removing all the slow motion and repeat cuts, the film as a whole would measure around an hour, if that.

Thematically, director/writer Fuyuhiko Nishi treads the same clichéd martial arts tropes of “self-defense and protection only” and “fighting is wrong, and is a last resort only.” However, without any affinity for the leading characters, the message falls flat and Takeda’s arc feels less like the development of self and more like an abrupt shift of personality compelled by the plot. Unless you have some massive fetish for Japanese school girls in action, there is absolutely nothing redeeming about this film. It is a disappointment as an action flic, fails as a plea for traditionalism, and lacks any impact as a cathartic work of art at all. If we are to see more of Takeda as a rising film star, hopefully it won’t be anywhere near Fuyuhiko or his team.

Movie Review: Bodyguards and Assassins

Shi Yue Wei Cheng

“Bodyguards and Assassins”

Hong Kong, 2009

Genre: Historical

132 minutes

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1403130/

When the revolutionary Dr. Sun Yat Sen plans a return to Hong Kong, his supporters find themselves in the midst of a life-and-death struggle to protect the one man who can save China.

Unlike most martial arts films, “Bodyguards and Assassins” lacks a clear hero for the audience to identify with. The plot revolves around a group of Chinese revolutionaries working at a newspaper press, including the businessman owner and his son, the president of the press, the owner’s rickshaw driver, and a host of other colorful characters from around the city. It seems like this band of heroes is meant to symbolize the necessity of unity among all the social levels of Chinese culture, but as a film, it makes it difficult to follow a single storyline. There are numerous subplots revolving around a rickshaw driver’s love interest, a daughter seeking revenge for her father’s murder, a police officer’s strained relationship with his estranged wife, and, of course, the plans to escort and protect Dr. Sun from the government’s team of ninja assassins (no, seriously, Chinese ninjas).

Donnie Yen, the film’s big martial arts star, plays the aforementioned cop, who begins the film by working for the local government, doing odd jobs for money to spend on wine and gambling. His wife left him for the businessman with his daughter, but goes back to him and asks him to help protect Dr. Sun. He agrees after meeting his child for the first time, and lends a critical hand in protecting the escort through the streets of Hong Kong. He eventually is hunted down by one of the top assassins working for the government, played by MMA superstar Cung Le, the second most recognizable face in the movie. Their fight scene is the best in the film, and is probably the biggest draw for Americans looking for the movie.

To call this movie a “Kung Fu Film” would be a bit of a misnomer. Really, it’s more like a historical film that happens to use martial arts and wire-fu in the fight scenes. The fights are choreographed and shot well, complemented nicely by the orchestral rock music score. Unfortunately, due to the lack of a clear hero, there isn’t much of a final showdown with the big bad boss man, resulting in a somewhat anti-climactic ending. Even with the cast of lesser heroes, tragedy abounds through the film, removing any chance of catharsis that could have been used to relieve the audience’s tension. In the end, there isn’t really a personal resolution to the film. As a Chinese-American, I do feel a small swell of pride as Dr. Sun’s mission is accomplished, but it may be a little much to ask of people who don’t have the cultural connection to the historical events portrayed in the film. Still, if you’re just watching it for the “good parts,” it’s still a movie worth picking up.

Movie Review: Blood and Bone

Blood and Bone

USA, 2009

Genre: Dramatic Action, Gangster

93 minutes

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0346631/

Michael Jai White stars as an ex-convict fighting his way through the underground martial arts circuit, hoping to fulfill a deathbed promise.

“Blood and Bone” markets itself as a gritty MMA movie for the next generation of fighters, billing popular stars like Bob Sapp and Gina Carano. However, it fails to live up its own hype, and presents the same flashy kung fu choreography we have seen time and time again with some flashy groundwork thrown in as an afterthought. By the climactic fights, the pretense is dropped completely to make way for spinning jump kicks and a katana vs. Chinese jian battle. The fights themselves aren’t too bad, although only the last two really last long enough for any satisfaction.

The film is mostly well-shot and edited, although it feels like it’s trying very hard to come off as edgy and street bred, hoping to identify with the no-nonsense-tough-guy-raised-on-the-streets-but-is-still-a-good-person demographic out there. Sarcasm aside, it becomes difficult to identify with White’s hero, who is an amalgam of characters played by David Carradine, Steven Seagal, and Jet Li; cool and in control under all circumstances, capable of playing with the mom and kids one minute, then breaking a man’s arm with no regrets in the next. White does have some chemistry with Dante Basco’s Pinball, an underground fight promoter, manager, and announcer rolled into one very fashionable street thug. Still, White seems to only display his acting skills when, ironically, his character is acting in a role of his own. The talented Eamonn Walker, on the other hand, does extremely well portraying the bushido-obsessed villain James, who demonstrates a very discernible character arc throughout the film. Gina Carano and Kimbo Slice, who became selling points for the film, are present for only one scene each and Carano speaks only one line, which is to be expected for an MMA-sploitation film as this. Bob Sapp, however, plays a thick-headed villain through most of the film. As in his fights, he plays a two-dimensional heel perfectly, and is subsequently vanquished by our hero during the rising action.

“Blood and Bone” doesn’t really present us with anything new, but it is a quick and entertaining romp through the tough and dirty streets and pit fights. If you don’t expect too much from the story, action, or acting, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the above-average quality of production put into the film. The decision to go straight to DVD was probably a smart one, and makes for great pre-UFC entertainment with popcorn and a good group of friends.