N-Girls Vs Vampire
(Tennen shojo Man next: Yokohama hyaku-ya hen) (1999)
Directed by Takashi Miike
Artistic Value:
Entertainment Value:

Synopsis
When a number of teenaged virgins who have been discovered by a modelling agency are transformed into vampires, sexy high school student Man Koda (Ayana Sakai) and her friends take it upon themselves to defeat the undead fiends responsible.

Analysis
Takashi Miike's two part made for television movie N-Girls Vs Vampire is entertaining, but it is far from the director's best work. In fact, there is not much in the film that is distinctive. The production values are usually decent but invariably unexceptional. The acting is competent but uninspired, and the action sequences are well choreographed but forgettable. As mediocre as it is, the movie does, nonetheless, include just enough sleazy weirdness to make watching it a genuinely fun experience.

While the film gives few hints of the director's talents, Miike's inclusion of the odd bizarre touch does impress upon it some slight intimation of his personality. At one point, for example, two of the girls assault a strangely dressed man who confronts them as they walk down a street and asks them if they believe in the existence of God. Elsewhere, the father of one of the girls, having, apparently, learned that the vampires are only interested in virgins, decides to sneak into his daughter's room and have sex with her in order to save her life. Various other scenes include such unexpected details as discussions about vibrators and sugar daddies, karate filled battles with supernatural fiends, misogynistic teenaged male vampires whose interactions with one another are imbued with strong homoerotic tensions, and much more.

These various peculiar events are considerably enlivened by the movie's vivacious young cast. The protagonist and her friends are all attractive young women and most, especially the lead, have likeable on screen personas. Ayana Sakai is consistently cute and endearing. None of these actors give particularly notable performances, but they do infuse the film both with their own charms and a real vibrant energy.

Although the movie is animated by its peculiar touches and its appealing cast, it is also burdened with a fairly amorphous plot which not only frequently fails to develop in a particularly coherent way but also includes a number of unexplained details. When, for instance, the father mentioned above decides to deflower his daughter, he does so without anyone, other than the viewer, being aware that the vampires are targeting virgins.

N-Girls Vs Vampire is hardly typical of Miike's work. In fact, it is so different from his other films that it is almost hard to believe that he directed the movie. Nevertheless, whatever its faults, the film, like many other hackneyed, low budget movies, is often great exploitative fun.

Review by Keith Allen

Note: N-Girls Vs Vampire is available on DVD at Asian Cult Cinema.

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