Hatsujô kateikyôshi: Sensei no aijiru

Well what ever can one say!? If ever a country is awarded a trophy for making the most jaw dropping films, that country will undoubtedly be Japan. Partly it is a cultural difference and the fact that until fairly recently the Japanese hardly stepped outside their own country or partook of another peoples cultures, to then find an American presence within their nation after World War 2, has created some fascinating contradictions. This colourful extravaganza is part erotic, part silly, part funny and also attempting a heady mix of politics and philosophy. Not always successful (possibly because of budgetary restraints) this is never less than great fun and the good/bad girl at the centre, played by adult video star, Emi Kuroda is absolutely tremendous. Her looks and her performance that is. References to the Iraq war and the stuff with President bush's finger are maybe pushing things but this is still well worth a look, even if only because it certainly is that little bit different.

It's hard to know just what to make of the Japanese film, "The Glamorous Life of Sachiko Hanai." Is it a parody of a softcore porn flick or just a softcore porn flick itself? I tend to think it's the former, since, along with its myriad (and fairly graphic) simulated sex scenes, the film is also a wildly funny, tongue-in-cheek absurdist farce, replete with social criticism and political commentary for the deeper thinkers in the crowd. Not all of it works equally well, but you at least gotta' give 'em props for trying.

Sachiko Hanai is an attractive young tutor with what a polite person might describe as an "active interest in sexual expression." Despite her job as a teacher, Sachiko is no great shakes in the brains department, until, that is, she is accidentally shot in the forehead by a secret agent from North Korea. Due to the bullet's strategic placement in the cerebral cortex, Sachiko suddenly becomes a super genius, able to comprehend French philosophy, complex laws of physics and arcane mathematical equations with no trouble whatsoever. She also develops a paranormal ability to peer into the unseen mysteries of the universe and to foretell future events. Her condition, however, does not curtail her appetite for sex; in fact, if anything, her newfound intelligence seems only to exacerbate it.

Indeed, much of the fun of "Sachiko Hanai" derives from the incongruous juxtaposition of raw sexuality with intellectual pretentiousness. There's something immensely funny about watching people make passionate love while debating the finer points of dialectical materialism and String Theory or using Susan Sontag and Noam Chomsky as aphrodisiacs. The actors help to pull it off by playing their scenes with a straight-faced, deadpan seriousness that enhances the humor.

The plot gets even weirder when Sachiko finds herself in possession of the cloned, self-animated finger of George W. Bush and the machine that would allow it to unleash an arsenal of deadly nuclear weapons on an unsuspecting world. How's that for a storyline?

I frankly have no idea what this spy thriller cum sex comedy is really all about, but I had a great deal of fun watching it just the same.

This movie has generally been panned in the US by people who insist on approaching it entirely as a political satire. It is somewhat lame in that respect with a bizarro plot about a bubble-headed prostitute, "Sachiko Hanai" who turns into a super-genius after she is shot in the head, and then becomes embroiled in a plot by the North Koreans and Japanese Yakuza to use a cloned, disembodied finger of George W. Bush to start WWIII. (Bush, of course, is a very easy international target, but the scene where his finger sexually assaults the heroine would have been far more believable frankly if it was Bill Clinton's cloned finger).

As a nuclear-themed political satire, this is not going to make anybody forget about "Dr. Strangelove", but it's important to remember that this is basically a sex film. "Sachiko Hanai" is a lot more sexy and spends a lot more time naked than Peter Sellers in his three roles in "Dr. Strangelove". And the scene where she throws hot sex on a middle-aged college professor while they discuss Kirkegaard and Noam Chomsky may not be the most clever satire imaginable, but by the very lame international standards of comedy in sex films, it's positively brilliant.

This is a latter-day Japanese "pink" film, which is about the only genre left anywhere in the world where you have erotic films with ANYTHING of interest in them beyond the sex. If you want clever political satire, there's certainly much better movies than this. On the other hand, if you're nothing but a hairy-palmed, ceiling painter, the plot here, and the (somewhat) non-graphic sex, will no doubt only serve to distract you from the matter at, um, hand. There is always a place though as far as I'm concerned for a film like this that is decently made (relatively speaking, of course) and that combines sex appeal with something that is at least a little more interesting.

A lot of soft-core sex, yes... after about the fifth sex scene they become not only gratuitous, but untitillating and annoying. In fact, some of the sex just blatantly screams "fanservice" (anime term).

The politics are heavy-handed and sledgehammer style. Yes, W.'s there, playing a demonic presence - but somehow it's less insulting to him than, say, a European movie would've been.

Great bizarre surreal stuff in the first 45 minutes. Kind of liked where it was going.

There's a lot of it that reminded me of manga mixed with 60's Italian surreal trippy movies. But then the last 1/2 of the movie just seems like they ran out of money and ideas.

After it hits the hour mark, you start to feel the momentum running down... some of the best ideas that you expect to be going somewhere just unravel. Characters are used up and disposed of, or sometimes just disposed of. A whole scene plays out in a cave that I thought would never ever ever end. I don't mind that they didn't spoon-feed the essential message of the film but... What WAS the message ? No clue. If any Amer/Euro etc. movie started dropping philosophy-bombs like this in an attempt to prove how smart it is, it'd be laughed off the street. But since they're spouted by a kawaii Japanese girl, well, then, bless her heart.

A strange title sequence at the end of the end credits, too.

Some budgetary constraints are very apparent - sound effects, many editing points, and one (I hesitate to even call it) shootout was hilariously awful. Some very cheap makeup jobs.

I compare this to Kiyoshi Kurosawa's "Cure" - they're different kinds of movie but "Cure" also has a surreal sense - the characters feel like real people and it's terrifying. "Sachiko" just leaves me... pfft. nah. Good enough.

I found this movie to be surprisingly enjoyable. Its a pinku film due to the nudity and sex scenes but even with her clothes on the actress was quite good. The movie seems to be a farcical lark on those thriller "there is a WMD on the loose" scenarios. The humour (intended or not, Im not sure) was pretty good. Some of the sequences makes no sense but again I don't think this movie is meant to be taken seriously. I think when watching the movie you have to understand that it is essentially a B movie and not compare to it big budget thrillers (or even low budget art-house movies). With that in mind you will actually find the movie quite enjoyable.