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Pinky Violence Collection (The)
R1 - America - Panik House Review written by and copyright: Gary Jukes (6th February 2006). |
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The Film
 Despite being relative newcomers to the DVD scene, Panik House have started off in excellent fashion with The Pinky Violence Collection, an impressive boxset containing four great examples of Japan's Sukeban genre of filmmaking. Sukeban, or 'Girl Boss' films feature "bad girls" - tough biker chicks or wannabe gangster girls - in stories of betrayal and revenge, usually coupled with copious amounts of violence and soft-core nudity. Produced in the main by Nikkatsu and Toei Studios in the 1970s, the two biggest stars of the genre are undoubtedly Miki Sugimoto and Reiko Ike, and both girls feature in three of the four films presented in this collection. Their off-screen rivalry (Sugimoto was often pitched as Ike's big-screen successor) often translated into their intense on-screen performances. Sugimoto is also incredibly beautiful, which certainly doesn't hurt things - apart from some of the men she abuses along the way. But enough about that and onto the films. The first film in the set is "Delinquent Girl Boss: Worthless to Confess" (1972), the story of a group of former reform school girls who end up living in the same town after their release. Rika (Reiko Oshida), a wannabe gangster tough girl, goes to work at a car repair shop owned by the father of one of her former classmates, Midori (Yumiko Katayama). Unfortunately the local Yakuza are trying to force him out of business thanks to debts run up by his daughter's no-good husband, Yamada. Rika later meets another former classmate, Mari (Yukie Kagawa), who works at an 'art studio' posing naked for lecherous patrons. The money she earns here goes towards looking after her sick husband, Arai, a former Yakuza who wants to put his past life behind him. With the offer of a large cash payoff which will enable him and his wife to leave town, the Yakuza hire Arai to kill Midori's father, but in a double-cross both men are killed. The girls unite (along with Arai's brother, Ryuji), to take revenge on the gang. Worthless to Confess is quite a complicated tale and it's fascinating to see how all the girls' lives and relationships intertwine with one another, eventually leading to the inevitable tragedy and quest for vengeance. Unfortunately, this heavy focus on the characters makes the film play more like a drama and the action is somewhat restrained up until the final reel. Overall, though, director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi keeps things moving along nicely and sustains our interest in the characters. And so onto the second film, "Girl Boss Guerilla" (1972), directed by the prolific Norifumi Suzuki. Miki Sugimoto stars as Sachiko, leader of the 'Red Helmet' biker gang from Shinjuku. One day the girls ride into Kyoto and walk straight into trouble, as Sachiko challenges the leader of the local girl gang to a fight for leadership of the group. Sachiko wins, but soon finds that the gang are pretty low down the hierarchy and have the Tsutsui Yakuza watching over them. When the leader of the Tsutsui gang tries to take over, Sachiko attacks him but is beaten back by his henchmen and is eventually rescued by Ichiro (Michitarô Mizushima), a trainee boxer. When Ichiro heads out of town to a hot springs training camp, Sachiko and her gang follow. Unfortunately the Tsutsui gang have also followed, intent upon pressuring the boxer's trainer because of Ichiro's earlier actions. With the trainer refusing to back down, and Sachiko refusing to leave Ichiro, bloodshed - and revenge - soon follows. Girl Boss Guerilla contains a good mixture of violence and humour, and a strong performance from Sugimoto who gets to display some emotional range beyond the standard 'bad girl' norm. Some of the comedy is a little on the juvenile side - one of the girls seduces a priest who gives her the clap, so she sleeps with as many Yakuza as she can get her hands on to pass it on to them - but on the whole works well. Of course, no Sukeban film would be complete without the violence, and director Suzuki duly delivers in the numerous fight scenes. The third film in the collection is "Terrifying Girls' High School: Lynch Law Classroom" (1973), the story of an ultra-strict reform school and its corrupt administration. The girls are kept in line by the 'Disciplinary Committee', a group of sadistic girls who hand out beatings and other punishments in return for money. Three new girls arrive, led by Miki Sugimoto as Noriko, and immediately begin to fight back at the Committee. Unknown to them all, Noriko is a gang leader from Yokohama known as the 'Boss with the Cross', and when Noriko discovers that one of her former gangmates died at the hands of the committee, she and a group of other girls (along with Reiko Ike's Kyoko, a former gang rival) team up to bring down the corrupt Principal, take revenge against the Disciplinary Committee, and destroy the school itself. Lynch Law Classroom is my favourite of the four films, and not just because of the large number of attractive Japanese women in school uniforms that are on show! Director Norifumi Suzuki serves up a heady cocktail of sex, violence, torture, and blackmail, capped off with an over-the-top finale that sees the schoolgirls barricading themselves inside the school and beating off the riot police with fire hoses and school furniture. Brilliant stuff. Finally we have "Criminal Woman: Killing Melody" (1973), directed by Atsushi Mihori. After her father, forced into drug dealing by the Yakuza, is murdered, Maki (Reiko Ike) attempts to exact revenge on gang boss Oba (Ryoji Hayama) but fails. Sent to prison, she quickly makes an enemy of Masayo (Miki Sugimoto), mistress of Oba, who beats her down in a vicious fight. When Maki refuses to quit, Masayo declares her the winner. Befriended by fellow inmates Yukie, Natsuko, and Kaoru, Maki reveals the story behind her imprisonment and how she plans to take revenge on Oba when released. Several years later, when finally released, Maki finds Yuki, Natsuko and Kaoru are waiting for her. Together they plan the downfall of Oba Industries, which they begin by igniting a gang war between Oba and the rival Hamayasu clan. As the two gangs kill each other off, aided by Maki working from the inside, Masayo moves ever closer to taking her revenge. Killing Melody is a great film with a strong lead performance from Ike. First-time director Mihori takes to the genre like a duck to water, serving up plenty of torture, prostitution, extortion, lengthy fight scenes and, of course, nudity - those last two usually at the same time.
Video
All four films are presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, and look very good indeed. Given their age, you can be forgiven for the odd speck of dust and touch of grain here and there, but overall the prints are clean and colours are vibrant.
Audio
The original Japanese mono soundtracks on all four films are generally clear and free from distortion. Again, given the age of the films, there's the odd pop here and there but nothing that distracts from the viewing experience.
Extras
All four discs feature the same set of extras: a theatrical trailer, poster & stills gallery, production notes, and director & star biographies. Each film also has an audio commentary: film critics Andy Klein & Wade Major on "Criminal Woman: Killing Melody"; "Outlaws of Japanese Cinema" author Chris D. on "Delinquent Girl Boss: Worthless to Confess" and "Terrifying Girls' High School: Lynch Law Classroom"; and "Asian Cult Cinema" columnist Wyatt Doyle and Panik House president Matt Kennedy on "Girl Boss Guerilla". All four commentaries are varied and interesting, and divulge a wealth of information on the genre, the stars, and the films themselves. There are some occasional silent pauses on Chris D's two commentary tracks, but not everyone can talk non-stop like Bey Logan does on his Hong Kong Legends commentaries! Also included in the collection is a 24-page booklet with informative notes on the Sukeban genre written by Chris D., and an audio CD, "Reiko Ike Sings". Having not heard much Japanese music outside the J-rock stylings of Gackt and D.A.I., this was an interesting listen and acts as a nice companion to the films. Ike's breathy, heavy voice plays over a soft lounge/jazz style backing to create a very interesting mood. Definitely worth a listen.
Overall
Excellent. All four films, despite being parts of different series, work well together and form a nice introduction to the genre. This is a superb package that any fan of Japanese exploitation cinema should own. But hurry - this set is strictly limited to 10,000 copies!
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