Zero Woman: Namae no nai onna

In this chapter, Rei, who continues her assassinations of rogue government officials and corrupt businessmen deemed as "enemies of the state", befriends a young male prostitute who likes to kill men while dressed in drag.

This version is quite short, under 75 minutes. The movie runs slow at times and drags too long in between action or gratuitous sex scenes of the "soft core" genre. The actress who plays Rei is cute but unconvincing as a lethal, seductive, cold blooded government assassin. Many of the scenes shot alternate between video and film.

Not the best of the series.

This movie essentially begins with the female assassin named "Rei" (Mai Tachihara) killing her intended target and afterwards getting extremely intoxicated at a bar. As she stumbles back to her apartment she notices a young male prostitute she met at the bar getting beaten by some other young males in an alley. She rescues him and takes him back to her place. When he awakens he tells her that his name is "Mitsuro" (Yujin Kitagawa) and further confides to her that he is often beaten up due to his sexual occupation. Feeling sympathetic to his plight she decides to let him stay with her even though she realizes that she must keep her work completely secret from him. What she doesn't realize is that he has some secrets which are just as sensitive as well. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that, while Mai Tachihara was certainly both talented and attractive enough for this particular role, the movie itself wasn't quite as good as the other films in the "Zero Woman" series. Quite honestly, it lacked the necessary action required for a picture of this type. Likewise, I didn't particularly care for the overall plot either. Be that as it may, this wasn't a bad movie by any means and all things considered I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Yes, Mai Tachihara is beautiful, but her beauty doesn't transcend her practically sitting in a urinal while she confronts someone in the men's room. No shooting just yakking with a gun pointed. It'll be interesting to see what comes next for this sloppy drunk and sluttier Zero Woman.

What you will not find in this installment is action. She shoots just two bullets. Take that out and you have a Lifetime movie. Well, I guess you would also have to take out the shower scene, a haircut, and the drunken alley scene. And, maybe the whole transvestite thing. I guess it won't work.

So, we are just left with a no action mess. Find another.