Fantastic Fest 2011

Director Noboru Iguchi and Makeup/FX Supervisor Yoshihiro Nishimura live in person!

Some movies just feel like they were made on a dare. Who the hell thought it was a good idea to put a kid-friendly remake of the beloved 1970s tokusatsu TV series Denjin Zaborgar in the hands of cinematic madman, Noboru Iguchi? The weirdos at Sushi Typhoon (Yakuza Weapon) did, that’s who! The cherubic maestro of blood geysers, butt-weapons and upskirt pervery, Iguchi reins it in slightly this time out and after watching KARATE-ROBO ZABORGAR, a tribute to, and loving spoof of, its source material, you’ll be glad he did. The final result is the best-looking, most deeply-felt and most consistently entertaining movie Iguchi has made yet. But it’s still a Flying Dragon Triple Kick of robot fights, karate vengeance and sexy lady robots.

Daimon (Yasuhisa Furuhara) and his motorcycle/robot pal/karate expert, Zaborgar, protect the citizens of Japan from flying cyborg heads and samurai kissing monsters. But when Daimon falls in love with the villainous Miss Borg (Mami Yamasaki), the two buds have a falling out that could ruin everything. Any further summary would read like the scribblings of the world’s coolest, most cracked-out 13 year old: the plot is a 50 car pile-up of smackdowns, wild comedy and robot rugby girls with chest dragons. Iguchi, finally armed with a real budget, packs the screen with gonzo spectacle and delivers the kind of movie that leaves your ribs bruised from giggling and your face aching from grinning too much.

It’s not all wine and robots, though: when the film jumps ahead 25 years to show what happens when a hero is forgotten, Iguchi’s not kidding around. Like all of the wildest dreamers, he wants you to believe as much as he does. As Daimon himself, now a slouching schlub with an aching back (Itsuji Itao), proclaims, “Though diabetic…though over the hill…if one keeps trying, one can fight until the last moment.” That’s the spirit, and it’s the message of Iguchi’s joyously retro rock-out. (sushi typhoon) (NYAFF)

Japanese films at Fantastic Fest 2011 are presented by WELL GO USA ENTERTAINMENT