Panik
House
| Review
by Curt Purcell
This
is the first of Toei's two "Elder Sister"
movies, the other being FEMALE
YAKUZA TALE, both given fine DVD treatment
by Panik House as part of the Pinky Violence
Collection.
I should start with a disclaimer:
the first film that I've seen in this genre
was KILL
BILL. I've enjoyed nearly all the Asian
cinema I've seen, but I haven't seen enough
to honestly call myself a fan, far less
to speak with any authority on the subject.
Having said that, SEX AND FURY blew me away!
A little girl witnesses her
father's murder. He's ambushed by three
assassins before her eyes, and as he lies
dying, his bloody fingers hold up three
of the playing cards he's dropped: the deer,
the boar, and the butterfly. I didn't realize
it until further into my first viewing,
but here we have this movie's "Death
List Five" (or rather, Three). Each
card indicates an assassin, in a surprisingly
straightforward manner--the murderers actually
have the playing card images tattooed on
their backs!
The experience proves to be
very formative. The girl grows into a Yakuza
gambler with the card images tattooed on
her shoulder. In her hands, the cards are
like deadly suriken, and even her alias
of "Inoshika Ocho" refers to a
card game. Most of all, though, her life
is dedicated to finding the three assassins
and exacting bloody vengeance. That's where
the "sex and fury" come in, because
she makes extravagant use of both toward
that end.
Christina Lindberg makes a
pre-THRILLER appearance as an Occidental
foil to Reiko Ike's Ocho. She herself is
a gambler, but also a British spy in a subplot
glued onto the main story with generous
dollops of coincidence. As you might expect,
she provides some "sex and fury"
of her own.
I found this movie stylish
and fun overall, with a story and performances
a notch or two above my expectations--but
one scene in particular is simply incandescent.
Ocho is ambushed in her bath. She jumps
out of the tub, grabs a sword, and then,
stark naked, she proceeds to slaughter her
assailants. Let me tell you, there's nothing
like seeing arterial spray hit breasts that
are still bouncing from the sword-stroke!
Without a stitch of clothing (much less
a GAME OF DEATH jumpsuit), Ocho takes the
fight outside into the snow, and delivers
a limb-lopping massacre that paints the
garden red. This scene is real movie magic,
a kind of dream or ideal projected on the
screen. It's not so much a highlight as
a moment of transcendence, and it's certainly
worth the price of admission.
Chris D (not the rapper, but
the American Cinematheque Film Programmer)
provides an audio commentary and the essay,
"Toei's Bad Girl Cinema." Both
seemed helpful and informative, but like
I said, I'm no expert, so our mileage may
vary. In any case, if you're a genre junkie
with a taste for the exotic, there's no
question whatsoever – SEX AND FURY
is must-see!
