The Machine Girl (Kataude mashin gâru) (2008) |
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The Machine Girl (Kataude mashin gâru) (2008) |
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| General | Extras | ||
| Category | Thriller |
Featurette-Making Of-Making of THE MACHINE GIRL Theatrical Trailer-Original Trailer Gallery-Photo-Stills Gallery |
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| Rating |
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| Year Of Production | 2008 | ||
| Running Time | 93:14 | ||
| RSDL / Flipper | No/No | Cast & Crew | |
| Start Up | Ads Then Menu | ||
| Region Coding | 4 | Directed By | Noboru Iguchi |
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Studio
Distributor |
 Madman Entertainment |
Starring |
Minase Yashiro Asami Kentaro Shimazu Honoka Nobuhiro Nishihara Yűya Ishikawa Ryôsuke Kawamura Demo Tanaka Nahana Taro Suwa |
| Case | Amaray-Transparent | ||
| RPI | $29.95 | Music | Takashi Nakagawa |
| Video | Audio | ||
| Pan & Scan/Full Frame | Full Frame |
Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) |
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| Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | ||
| 16x9 Enhancement |
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| Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
| Original Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | Miscellaneous | |
| Jacket Pictures | No | ||
| Subtitles | English | Smoking | No |
| Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
| Action In or After Credits | No | ||
The Machine Girl is the story of Ami Hyűga (Minase Yashiro), an orphaned high school girl skilled in martial arts trying to lead a normal existence when her brother is killed by bullies with links to the Yakuza. Attempting revenge she finds herself captured and tortured by the Yakuza, narrowly escaping but losing her left arm. Taken in by two kindly mechanics who take pity on her, they build her a high-powered machine gun to replace the lost limb and help her with a plan to avenge her lost brother and stop the Yakuza permanently.
The film is an instant cult classic; the violence that follow the set up is so unbelievably extreme and hilarious that, for those who can stomach it, it's a never-ending thrill ride of amputations and eviscerations and gorings. The action sequences are actually shot and edited really well, avoiding the kind of fast-cutting-close-up garbage punctuating most modern American action films, and the practical effects are astonishing, ranging between very-realistic and so over-the-top that it's consistently repellent and horrifying in the most wonderful way possible. (The film also occasionally dabbles in unfortunate CG shots that are obvious and ineffective, but are fortunately almost always mixed in with practical effects.) Beyond this, there's also a surprising amount of well-written, enjoyable melodrama here that makes the protagonists human and the antagonists very unlikeable, making their brutal demises all the more satisfying.
The Machine Girl is so hilariously absurd and disgusting that it's fantastic, consistently upping the ante to capitalise on its premise and never ever being boring. Writer and director Noboru Iguchi - whose background is in the Japanese adult film industry, of all things - has crafted a movie that deserves a franchise. Never anything more than it wants to be, and catering to a specific audience, it's a cult classic that will astonish anyone who watches it.
The Machine Girl looks bloody awesome on DVD, nearly flawless in its presentation. There's no low level noise, no film artefacts, no interlacing, nothing but clean clear spurting and insides. A very small amount of grain suggests that the film was shot on HD, which I cannot confirm but would not be surprised by except for how good the transfer looks during night scenes - very detailed and splendid to watch. I can't find anything to complain about here - it's a very good looking DVD.
The English subtitles here are perfect in capturing the translation and emotions of the dialogue.| Sharpness |  |
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There's unfortunately not a lot of difference between these two audio tracks, with the rear speakers on the 5.1 track only coming to life during the more visceral action sequences. That said, they're both fine, with a solid audio mix to grab and hold attention during the extreme carnage and scenes of sadness and reflection alike. The film's surround could have been utilized better, and more bass might have given the big fights more gusto, but as it is it's still fine.
The music by Takashi Nakagawa does an excellent job of firing up the action sequences but then giving moments of character development and dialogue pathos and effect; one excellent example is the music that builds up tension during the early dinner table slaughter, captivating and hitting its amazingly violent climax without ever drawing attention to itself. Like the phenomenal editing, the score is perfect for the material.
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NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
The video and audio transfers are both very good.
The extras are unfortunately minimal.
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| Extras |   |
| Plot | |
| Overall | |
| Review Equipment | |
| DVD | Sony Playstation 3 (HDMI 1.3) with Upscaling, using Component output |
| Display | Philips 47PFL9732D 47-inch LCD . Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p. |
| Audio Decoder | Logitech 5500 THX. |
| Amplification | Logitech 5500 THX |
| Speakers | Logitech 5500 THX |