Luris Blear
01-16-2009, 10:51 PM
Tokyo Gore Police.
Like many people, my first experience with Tokyo Gore Police came by way of the four minute trailer that circulated through various web sites. This trailer started off gorier and weirder than most horror movies intended for this kind of wide circulation. As I watched the trailer get bloodier and weirder by the second, I kept wondering if it would stop. The goods kept coming. This leaves a person with the feeling that you just saw the best four minutes of the movie.
No. You did not. You saw four minutes that accurately represented one hour and forty-nine minutes of horror cinema rapture.
This movie begins in surreal, bloody ecstasy. The first five minutes alone appear to have utilized more stage blood than all of Freddy vs Jason, which itself boasted no small amount of splatter. The movie begins with the protagonist, Ruka, entering combat with one of the many villains called Engineers. The basics of the story are explained quickly and well after the battle, and the fun keeps coming.
Tokyo Gore Police feels like it owes a lot to a number of films from the 1980s. Robocop (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) comes to mind through the use of popular television as an expression of social satire. A great number of the visuals would have been at home in David Cronenberg's Videodrome (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.). The plot itself is typical pop-culture Japan, but done right. The movie is fast-paced, non-stop, over the top, and smart as hell. Troma films and the 1988 movie Dead Heat (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) also come to mind for their free-for-all attitudes toward genre.
The only flaw in this movie would be its visual effects. Those who enjoy hyper-realistic mutilations may feel let down. What is lost in quality is more than made up for in both quantity and the very nature behind the visuals.
It takes a special kind of movie to make me wince. It takes a wonderful movie to make me wince while watching in a well lit room on a 17 inch computer monitor because my wife could not stand to watch any more, and would I please take the dvd to my computer.
Like Machine Girl (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.), this movie aims to be many things: action, comedy, horror, and drama. Unlike Machine Girl, Tokyo Gore Police never needs to stop to decide which genre it will be next.
The fun just keeps coming.
The gore does not stop.
The bizarre gets more bizarre.
And it just keeps coming.
-------------------
Just to apply numbers, since people seem to love them so much, I plugged this movie into my ancient voodoo math spreadsheet.
Plot: 8. The story serves the purpose of the film well, explains everything that needs to be explained, and keeps a very good pace.
Gore: 10. This movie does not lie with a clever name. Tokyo Gore Police delivers in abundance.
Body Count: 10. In order to kill people in a lot of creative ways, you need to kill a lot of people. Preferably in the messiest manner possible.
Effects: 6. Mostly visual, with some computer work added in. Then again, you start to wonder if you really want some of this to look any more realistic.
Charm: 10. This movie is like a fine woman: smart and constantly fun to be with. Such a sweet breath of fresh air.
Mock-Proof. 5. This is about average. I have no doubt this movie could be heckled for any number of reasons. I really didn't want to.
Scare Factor: 9. Lights on, small computer monitor, still scary.
Nudity: 4. There are a few bared beasts, but nothing to get excited about.
Voodoo Math Total, compared against highest-ranking movie on spreadsheet: 9.8/10.
-------------------
This movie is a treat for horror fans. It must be seen to be believed.
Like many people, my first experience with Tokyo Gore Police came by way of the four minute trailer that circulated through various web sites. This trailer started off gorier and weirder than most horror movies intended for this kind of wide circulation. As I watched the trailer get bloodier and weirder by the second, I kept wondering if it would stop. The goods kept coming. This leaves a person with the feeling that you just saw the best four minutes of the movie.
No. You did not. You saw four minutes that accurately represented one hour and forty-nine minutes of horror cinema rapture.
This movie begins in surreal, bloody ecstasy. The first five minutes alone appear to have utilized more stage blood than all of Freddy vs Jason, which itself boasted no small amount of splatter. The movie begins with the protagonist, Ruka, entering combat with one of the many villains called Engineers. The basics of the story are explained quickly and well after the battle, and the fun keeps coming.
Tokyo Gore Police feels like it owes a lot to a number of films from the 1980s. Robocop (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) comes to mind through the use of popular television as an expression of social satire. A great number of the visuals would have been at home in David Cronenberg's Videodrome (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.). The plot itself is typical pop-culture Japan, but done right. The movie is fast-paced, non-stop, over the top, and smart as hell. Troma films and the 1988 movie Dead Heat (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) also come to mind for their free-for-all attitudes toward genre.
The only flaw in this movie would be its visual effects. Those who enjoy hyper-realistic mutilations may feel let down. What is lost in quality is more than made up for in both quantity and the very nature behind the visuals.
It takes a special kind of movie to make me wince. It takes a wonderful movie to make me wince while watching in a well lit room on a 17 inch computer monitor because my wife could not stand to watch any more, and would I please take the dvd to my computer.
Like Machine Girl (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.), this movie aims to be many things: action, comedy, horror, and drama. Unlike Machine Girl, Tokyo Gore Police never needs to stop to decide which genre it will be next.
The fun just keeps coming.
The gore does not stop.
The bizarre gets more bizarre.
And it just keeps coming.
-------------------
Just to apply numbers, since people seem to love them so much, I plugged this movie into my ancient voodoo math spreadsheet.
Plot: 8. The story serves the purpose of the film well, explains everything that needs to be explained, and keeps a very good pace.
Gore: 10. This movie does not lie with a clever name. Tokyo Gore Police delivers in abundance.
Body Count: 10. In order to kill people in a lot of creative ways, you need to kill a lot of people. Preferably in the messiest manner possible.
Effects: 6. Mostly visual, with some computer work added in. Then again, you start to wonder if you really want some of this to look any more realistic.
Charm: 10. This movie is like a fine woman: smart and constantly fun to be with. Such a sweet breath of fresh air.
Mock-Proof. 5. This is about average. I have no doubt this movie could be heckled for any number of reasons. I really didn't want to.
Scare Factor: 9. Lights on, small computer monitor, still scary.
Nudity: 4. There are a few bared beasts, but nothing to get excited about.
Voodoo Math Total, compared against highest-ranking movie on spreadsheet: 9.8/10.
-------------------
This movie is a treat for horror fans. It must be seen to be believed.