Kataude mashin gâru (2008)

Director:

Noboru Iguchi

Writer:

Noboru Iguchi (writer)

Release Date:

23 May 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Horror | Thriller

Plot:

Ami is a typical college girl. She's bright, friendly, popular and athletic, with nothing to set her...

Plot Keywords:

Suicide | Extreme Gore | Throat Slitting | Punched In Stomach | Kicked In The Groin

Cast

Minase Yashiro	...	Ami Hyuga
Asami	...	Miki
Kentarô Shimazu	...	Ryûji Kimura / Kimura gang boss
Honoka	...	Violet Kimura
Nobuhiro Nishihara	...	Sho Kimura
Yûya Ishikawa	...	Suguru Sugihara
Ryôsuke Kawamura	...	Yu Hyuga
Demo Tanaka	...	Kaneko / Kimura gang member
Nahana	...	Masako Fujii
Tarô Suwa	...	Kimura gang member
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Noriko Kijima	...	Yoshie
Kentaro Kishi	...	Yôsuke Fujii (as Kentarô Kishi)
Ryôji Okamoto		(as Ryôji Okamoto)
Erika Terajima
Hiroko Yashiki

Also Known As:

The Machine Girl (International: English title) (USA)
The One-Armed Machine Girl (International: English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA | Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Certification:

Chile:18 | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | Hong Kong:III | USA:Not Rated | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Germany:18 (cut) | UK:18 | Australia:R (2009) | Canada:18A (Alberta) | New Zealand:R18

Filming Locations:

Japan

Company:

Fever Dreams

Trivia:

The family kami (god) of the killers is Hanzo Hattori. Hatori Hanzo was a famous ninja and is often referenced in various fiction and entertainment.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the Machine Girl confronts a group of guys in the beginning, she lunges into the air with her arms spread wide, where you can clearly see that they are both intact. Shortly after landing on the ground she shows that her left arm is actually missing and what remains is a nub.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Hajirai Machine Girl (2009) (V)

Ultra-violent cartoon-like gore/revenge flick is a real hoot!

I bought this a couple weeks ago & for some reason put off watching it till yesterday. Had I known what this was like, I'd have certainly watched it the same day I got it. Ami is an ordinary schoolgirl, sort of, with a brother named Yu. Ami and Yu's parents committed suicide because they were framed for a murder they did not commit, and the locals have made up their minds that Ami and Yu are bad news. When Yu and his friend Takashi are killed by the local bullies, led by an over-privileged Yakuza's son, Ami vows revenge. She becomes friends with Takashi's parents, who are auto mechanics, and after Ami loses an arm after a tangle with the Yakuzas, she's fitted for a machine gun arm. And the real fun begins.

Now...don't go into this expecting your basic revenge flick..oh, that sort of style is there, but add GALLONS of blood, most of it seemingly applied by a fire hose. There is no wound in this movie that doesn't seem to hit an artery. Add plenty of wild weapons, like throwing stars and swords and even a sort of claw that removes heads, not to mention the machine gun, and you've got an outrageous, cartoon-style ultra-violent flick. And, it's chock full of humor, in the deadpan delivery of lines & some of the action, which is just so ridiculous that you have to laugh.

An awesome flick that brings to mind "Dead Alive" and "Evil Dead", among other films, but it stands quite well on its own. Be sure to bring a strong stomach & your sense of humor, though. 8 out of 10.