Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of High Kick Girl; here's the breakdown of my ratings:
Story: 0.25
Direction: 1.00
Pace: 1.00
Acting: 0.75
Enjoyment: 1.25
TOTAL: 4.25 out of 10.00
I know most Martial Art Movie fans don't watch the films for their stunningly complex and engaging storylines, but at least a smidgen of a story is requisite to tie in the kick-ass action sequences.
Regrettably, it appears the writers were out to lunch and knocked this garbage out in their lunch hour, with time left to put away a seven-course dinner. It's a basic story of an impatient know-it-all girl who is too selfish to train for her Karate black belt. Her petulance leads her to join a gang - The Destroyers - whose ulterior motive is to defeat her master by using her as bait. Had the writers only chosen to scoff a burger and fries, they would have found time to strengthen the plot and the characters. And it's this that is the major letdown.
Another is the direction. Now here's the thing, the director had the marvellous notion to reshow the fights in slow-motion. It would have worked wonderfully had he employed it sparingly for all the "Ouch" hits like the laughing insane fighter who takes a blow to the head, and we watch it snap back and bounce off the wooden wall behind him. It looks realistic and painful, and it appears worse in slow-motion. Lamentably, the director uses this gimmick with every fight sequence, which results in the transformation from engaging into tedious. And that is a shame because, other than this, he's a good director. He has a fine sense of style and composition; there are some handsomely framed scenes. I especially liked the stand off's and the panoramic fights.
But we head back into terribleness when we get to the cast. Most of whom don't need to speak; just stand still and look tough and malicious. Sadly most look bored and more bored. And the ones who do speak are hit and miss. These gals and guys were chosen for their skills in the Martial Arts arena and not for being thespians, even amateur ones. The worst of these is Master Matsumara. Granted, Tatsuya Naka can fight, but he is stoic to the point of extremity. No emotion ever passes across his face - even when he gets punched in his mug, nothing changes.
If it weren't for the fights and their choreography, High Kick Girl would be 1-2-Miss. However, the fight sequences are pretty great, and most look realistic. The battle between High Kick Girl and the Strong School Girl is superb. Both have excellent styles and skills, which they demonstrate superbly in the fight.
Therefore I recommend this to the die-hard Martial Arts fans, but only for the fight scenes - you can fast-forward through the rest.
Please feel free to visit my The Game Is Afoot and Holding Out For A Hero lists to see where I ranked High Kick Girl.
Take Care & Stay Well.
