Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
J-pop favorites shine in new version of 1980s action series, July 21, 2007
YO YO GIRL COP is the English language release title for SUKEBAN DEKA: CODENAME ASAMIYA SAKI, a 2006 Japanese movie based on the original "Sukeban Deka" series detailing the exploits of female special agents operating undercover in high school. The new film is something of a sequel to the 1985 TV series, insofar as the main character, Saki Asamiya, is presented as the daughter of the original "Sukeban Deka" (delinquent girl cop), also codenamed Saki Asamiya, and played in this film by the TV actress who played the part in 1985, Yuki Saito.
What's special about this film version is the casting of four Japanese female pop singers from Hello! Project in the main roles, all of whom do extraordinary jobs. Solo artist Aya Matsuura, one of H!P's greatest talents, plays Saki, while Rika Ishikawa, formerly of Morning Musume and current lead singer of the trio, Biyuuden, plays Saki's chief antagonist, Reika Akiyama. The two girls generally display adorably sweet and sunny dispositions in their J-pop day jobs and have appeared together in games, contests and fun bits over the years on Morning Musume's TV show, "Hello Morning," but are called on here to play unrelenting tough girls, complete with climactic yo-yo battle, and do so with utmost spirit and conviction. The supporting roles of Tae and Kotomi, two girls bullied by Reika and her gang, are filled by Rika's sidekicks in Biyuuden, Yui Okada and Erika Miyoshi, both appearing in their very first film. They provide the film's emotional core by playing wounded souls whose victimization brings to the fore the criminal plot behind a website ominously named "Enola Gay" and designed to attract suicidal teens and promote a wave of suicide bombings. It's Saki's job to get to the bottom of all this and she takes the two bullied girls under her wing in a series of extremely touching scenes.
The heavy melodramatic tone (which matches that of the original TV series) may put off viewers expecting a more tongue-in-cheek, over-the-top style of anime-inspired Japanese action a la CUTIE HONEY, a live-action comic book superhero spectacle from 2004. This one is much more somber and a bit slow in getting to the far-fetched fight scenes that a film like this needs. The final yo-yo battle between Aya and Rika, filmed on location in a sprawling abandoned factory in winter weather, is quite a sight to behold, but one wishes a Hong Kong action director with a more imaginative touch and greater experience with female fighters (paging Corey Yuen!), had been brought in for the action scenes.
Still, if one feels sympathy for the basic situation of a damaged soul like Saki pulling herself together to serve a greater good and redeem herself by smashing a cynical plot to manipulate vulnerable teens, one can find this a reasonably gripping high school-themed thriller. And those who are already fans of Aya Matsuura and Rika Ishikawa can simply sit back and marvel at this whole new side of them.
One of the great attractions of this DVD is the inclusion of a special 41-minute feature, "Yo Yo Girl Mission," which chronicles the making of the film and the process by which two endearing J-pop idols are transformed into karate-kicking bad girls and mortal enemies. One can see their normal "amiable" selves in conflict with the "menacing" behavior required of the characters, leading to frequent breakups into laughter during shooting, leading to a charming bit at a press conference where Aya cutely chides Rika for such laughter. And when the petite and eager-to-please Aya insists on doing her own stunts and is seen getting rigged with cables for a wire-fu maneuver, it just increases our high regard and admiration for her. She's also seen in a dual interview alongside Yuki Saito, who plays her mother in the film, but shares no scenes with her. The two even compare their yo-yos.
Aya is heard on the soundtrack singing two songs with Miki Fujimoto, another ex-member of Morning Musume and Aya's partner in the H!P duo, GAM.
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
a fast-paced, beat-em-up, blow-em-up rocket shot of a movie, July 16, 2007
Who can the police turn to when a website run by an underground terrorist group that calls itself "Enola Gay" pops up bearing a skull and cross bones and a mysterious timer counting down to an unknown event? What about the teenage girl who just got deported back to Japan and who's mother is facing a trial where she is sure to be found guilty and sent to prison? Yeah, good call. Thus is born Asamiya Saki, the fourth rendition of the infamous Japanese crime fighter known as Yo-Yo Girl Cop. Played by pop star Aya Matsuura, this new cop is a hardcore, battle-ready action hero.
The film is filled with explosions of action... literally and figuratively. As Asamiya Saki races against the clock to discover who the terrorists are and put a stop to their evil plan, she constantly finds herself in situations where the only option is to fight her way out. In contrast, her new friend Taie Kono (delicately played by Yui Okada in her acting debut) is constantly running away and hiding from the many bullies that rule the private academy where Asamiya is working undercover. Reika, the worst of the bullies (played by Rika Ishikawa) is determined to make Asamiya Saki's undercover position as difficult as possible. As more bombs keep turning up, and the terrorist plot begins to come clear, Asamiya Saki readies herself for an intense showdown with the suspected head of the organization.
Yo-Yo Girl Cop is a fast-paced, beat-em-up, blow-em-up rocket shot of a movie. At times it almost feels like an anime come to life. Unfortunately, the cartoonish dialogue and plot tend to hold the movie back at times when it should be flying. When the film is heading full tilt towards the target, with time running out and action sequences shooting out one after the other, it's the best sort of good girl vs. bad girl comic book action. Unfortunately, the action comes to a halt a little too often as the back story is slowly revealed through online chat room discussions and text messages that lead into voice-over.
Ultimately, the plot begins to unravel and what seemed so epic at the beginning starts to feel a little more contrived and unimportant. The transition that Asimaya Saki makes from bumbling yo-yo tosser (hitting a wall and then knocking herself out in an early scene) to intense heroine sending her yo-yo flying and wearing what the featurette describes as a "bondage inspired battlesuit" seems too quick and unrealistic. Especially since the entire film takes place over a 72 hour period.
What adds a touch of class to the flm is that Yuki Saito, the original Asimaya Saki from the 1980's Japanese television series, makes a moving and effective cameo as Asimaya's mother, the former Asimaya Saki. Over twenty years after Saito immortalized the character on television, and three reincarnations later, she's back to help usher the super-heroine into the 21st century.
For those who love japanimation and borderline-nonsensical plotlines involving explosions, martial art fight scenes, and of course characters running unscathed through streams of machine-gun fire armed solely with a metal yo-yo, this is the film for you. For anyone else, it might be best to let this one pass by, for although this action feature, directed by Kenta Fukasaku (Battle Royale 2) has all the right intentions, it ends up pulling in a little short of the finish line.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Title says it all.., July 20, 2007
"YO-YO GIRL COP" has the kind of title that anyone shouldn't take seriously, and quite frankly, that's the only way to approach this latest film from Kenta Fukasaku(Asst. 2nd unit Director of Battle Royale, Geisha House). The film is freely adapted to manga of the same name, therefore, like I said, not to be taken seriously. C'mon, it is about a hot girl who uses a "Yo-yo" to bash bad guys for crying out loud..Don't expect an award- winning feature.
Aya Matsuura plays Asamiya Saki, a trouble-making girl with a complex past. Apparently, her mother is accused of espionage in the U.S., and to have the Japanese government plea bargain for her life, Saki must infiltrate the Seisen academy under the supervision of Kira, "Department K". She has 3 days to find out the truth about the mystery behind the mysterious countdown on a peculiar website, "Enola Gay"(named after the plane) and to help her mother. On the race against time, she encounters bullies, indifferent teachers and an odd female Student who may hold the key in unraveling the mystery and to prevent a terrorist group's apocalyptic plot.
Despite its faults, Yo-Yo girl cop delivers hard-hitting action with an anime touch, complete with intimidatingly sexy poses, an eccentric bad guy, outrageous gadgets and dominatrix outfits. Sexy Aya Matsuura fits the title role and hottie Rika Ishikawa plays her main nemesis. However, the occasional slapstick comedy seems out of place at times, it makes me grind my teeth. It starts with action, then comedy, then action, then a bit of drama, then action..The plot felt "Kiddish" and "goofy" because of the screenplay, that probably adults will not appreciate it to the fullest, particularly the main premise. Thankfully, the side-plot and links between characters is more complicated than expected.
For someone to appreciate this film, you will have to have at least read the comic to feel a connection and you will have to be enamored by the lead character; Aya Matsuura, and the villainess; Reika Ishikawa(which wouldn't be very hard, since they are both hot). There is always some guilty pleasure watching 2 women fight it out. It is better than "COOL DIMENSION" and maybe on par with "Cutie Honey".
PICTURE/AUDIO: 1.78 Anamorphic Widescreen. The picture is not perfect, some scenes look sharper and vibrant than others. There is some video noise but not distracting. The 5.1 Dolby Digital Japanese language track is very powerful and the subtitles are well done. For those of you who hate subs, there is an available 5.1 English dubbed track.
OVERALL: People who come in not expecting much, who love ANIME-inspired action choreography and just want to have a diversion should give this movie a go. It is cartoonish, but I think it is part of its charm. It is one of those films that you either "Love it or Hate it". AHEM, Did I mention Aya and Reika are Hotties?!
RENT IT! (A Weak 3 stars)
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