The Machine Girl (2008)
"Kataude mashin gâru" (original title)

Ami is a typical college girl. She's bright, friendly, popular and athletic, with nothing to set her apart from other girls her age other than the fact that she is an orphan, left to care ... See full summary »

Director:

Noboru Iguchi

Writer:

Noboru Iguchi

Stars:

Minase Yashiro, Asami, Kentarô Shimazu

Cast

Credited 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
Tsutomu Uchigasaki

Storyline

Ami is a typical college girl. She's bright, friendly, popular and athletic, with nothing to set her apart from other girls her age other than the fact that she is an orphan, left to care for her younger brother after her father committed suicide after being falsely accused of murder. But while there is tragedy in their past, the siblings' future looks good, except for one thing. Ami's brother has racked up a considerable debt to another boy at school, and that boy just happens to be the heir to a clan of vicious ninja-yakuza. Ami's brother can't pay, violence breaks out and in the course of trying to avenge her brother, Ami is captured by the clan. They torture her and hack her arm right off. Ami escapes, barely alive, and is taken in by the owners of a machine shop who build her a customized, bullet-spewing arm. From that point, the quest for revenge is on in earnest.

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Plot Keywords:

girl | revenge | suicide | attempted murder | splatter | 

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Taglines:

The Machine Girl - One Armed Ballistic Assault Heroine

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [jp]

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

23 May 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Machine Girl

Filming Locations:

Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fever Dreams, Nikkatsu

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

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.

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Goofs

When Ryota's father gets showered on blood, the make-up appliance "moves" while he screams in pain, showing his real skin underneath.

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Connections

References Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

User Reviews

Met the Hype and Beat It To Death

Ami Hyuga (Minase Yashiro) lives a normal life... until her brother is killed by the Yakuza and some red-suited ninjas. Then she seeks revenge! Not strong enough, she is captured and tortured, losing her arm in the process. Again, she seeks revenge... this time with the help of a mechanic, his wife and her new Gatling gun arm. The ultimate in vengeance cinema.

The poster for this film makes the claim that this is the sort of film Quentin Tarantino wishes he could make. That comparison is about as dead-on as one could be, as the similarities between "Machine Girl" and "Kill Bill" are overwhelming. Woman getting revenge against a crime syndicate... fountains of spraying blood (more here than in "Bill") and even a Hattori Hanzo sword. Fans of "Bill" should be all over this like Homer Simpson on a doughnut.

Swords, chainsaws... throwing stars... the works. Blood, blood and more geysers of blood. Sadly, some of the film is computer-generated (pretty much the majority of the violence), but it didn't take away from the film as much as I thought it might. One enemy losing his face, another getting his head chopped (half) off... could have been done traditionally, but I don't think this was outrageously bad.

This film is a rush... cheer it on, soak in the violence, drink plenty of Scotch. I don't know what to say... it's just so much action, dark humor... it's like a cross between "Kill Bill" and "Battle Royale", though I wouldn't put it quite on "Royale"'s level... finding this film was a great stroke of luck, and you ought to hunt for it, too.