Urufu gai: Moero ôkami-otoko

Wolf Guy (1975)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Sonny Chiba plays a detective who also happens to be the last member of a family of werewolves. On the force he uses his wolf senses to help solve crimes but the latest group of murders he's trying to solve won't be easy. People are screaming into a madness talking about a "tiger" when the next thing you know their bodies are being ripped apart. It's up to Chiba to try and figure out exactly what's going on.

WOLF GUY is a film that pretty much came out of nowhere to me. I'm a fan of Arrow Video so when they announced it most people were scratching their heads as to what it was. If you're looking for downright bizarre and surreal movies then you've got exactly that with this thing. It's part horror movie, part gangster film, part crime, part sci-fi and just about every other genre out there. You've even got long running stretches where the plot deals with syphilis as if this was one of those nutty sexploitation movies from the era! There's a lot going on here but sadly the film runs out of gas before it's over but more on that in a bit. There's still plenty of great stuff on display here so recommending the film is easy.

For starters, you get some outrageous and over-the-top gore scenes here that will have any gore hound screaming in joy. The scenes of the bodies being ripped apart and blood spewing everywhere certainly would have gotten the film a X-rating had it been released in America. If you thought Chiba's THE STREET FIGHTER was violence you ain't seen nothing' yet! Of course, Chiba is martial arts master so there are a great number of scenes where he has to battle a variety of men. The stunts are well-done and there's no doubt that they add some extra entertainment value. The film also offers up a lot of nudity and some bizarre sex story lines.

As you can tell, WOLF GUY is pretty wild on all exploitation levels. With that said, the film's third act does run out of steam and there's a great stretch of running time where the violence stops. It's really too bad they didn't keep up the pulp level but at the same time there's no question that the film deserves to be better known.

Wolf Guy was a vehicle for popular Japanese action star Sonny China. I'm pretty much a novice concerning Japanese cinema, only have seen a handful of movies. This film in particular is more of a action piece than horror. Wolf Guy moves along pretty fast with some nice kung fu action, naked chicks and blood. A lot of blood! Sonny China has some nice Wolverine type of pork chops and hair like Mr. Brady. Wolf Guy was different than I expected and for a horror/action hybrid that is 90 percent action works on its own terms. As I stated before I have only seen a few Japanese movies and maybe 2 of those were Sonny China flicks. In any case, I thought Wolf Guy was cool and I will definitely watch it again.

I saw this for the first time recently n I am totally surprised at the kind of bizarre stuff shown in this movie. Without having read the adult novel or the manga series and without having seen its prequel (Horror of the Wolf), I enjoyed this due to Sonny Chiba. They say its prequel has a transformation scene which is lacking in this one. We have a detective who is the last surviving werewolf n till the end we r deprived of a transformation scene. Since our detective is played by Sonny Chiba, there is tons of martial arts. We also have a girl who can kill people by jus thinking about their deaths and that too in a tiger fashion way of ripping the body apart. Now this is some serious X-woman stuff. This film has plenty of action, gory deaths, lots of nudity, over the top facial expressions of our dear Chiba n some bizarre stuff.

When three of four members of the band The Mobs, are killed under mysterious circumstances- by what seems to be a tiger- a young reporter starts to investigate.

He was the closest thing to a witness during the third murder, where the victim was frantically ranting about someone named Miki turning into a tiger, and cursing him.

So he goes to the only remaining member of the band to get some answers.

This man has become a wandering drunk, begging for booze...but tells him what he needs to know, nonetheless.

Miki was a young singer, whom they passed around as a sexual object.

It turns out, that as a result of this, one of the men gave her syphilis...which, in turn, drove her to become a heroin addict.

However, the reporter believes someone else had ordered them to rape her.

Which would explain why she's out for vengeance.

The reporter isn't the only one looking for this man, though.

The yakuza are also trying to get their hands on him.

For, the order was apparently given by a producer named Manabe Pro, who sought to punish the girl for having an attitude problem.

And he sent the Tsukada gang to clean up his mess.

Miki's only crime was falling in love with the son of a conservative politician, who sought to arrange a marriage between his son and the daughter of a financial mogul.

It was at his behest, that Manabe Pro was acting, when he handed Miki over to The Mobs, and ordered them to rape her...knowing she would contract syphilis from the encounter.

And that this could be used to sabotage their relationship.

Now, Miki has resorted to working at strip clubs, simply in order to scrape up enough money to secure her daily fix.

And the reporter truly understands her plight, so he seeks to help her.

For his family was previously wiped out in a violent attack.

Where, upon her deathbed, his mother endowed him with a curse of his own.

One that renders him invincible each month on the 15th day of the lunar cycle.

Thus, he's in a perfect position to help her get rid of the demons that haunt her...once and for all.

But, before he gets the chance...they are both captured by the politician's hired goons...who exploit Miki's powers in order to murder their rivals.

So he is forced to bide his time, until he can use his own powers...to free them both.

The goons want him to join their forces as well, however, and, thus, subject him to intense medical torture in order to convince him to do so.

These scenes are so incredibly realistic...that they legitimately made me cringe.

The cabal believe, that if they transfer his blood into their own guinea pig, that it will also transfer his abilities.

They want their own supersoldier, so they can just dispose of him...because he is unwilling to capitulate to their demands.

Luckily, he somehow manages to survive until the 15th day, when he is able to heal himself.

Now, he's hellbent on vengeance, himself...and out for blood.

This film is a badass rock and roll kung fu horror action fest, that is as unpredictable as it is awesome.

It goes in all sorts of directions that you would never expect, without pushing the limits so far as to get you get lost in the foray.

And, considering it's all based on a manga series, the more supernatural elements of the storyline manage to retain their believability.

Plus, the soundtrack is bangin'!

It's such a fun film, with vibes akin to a combination of Riki-Oh and Lone Wolf, especially in the latter half.

And it's all highly entertaining.

By the time it ends, it's almost like you're watching a totally different film, from when it began!

But somehow they manage to tie everything in to the conclusion.

And, even though it goes from being bizarrely sexilicious...to ending on a sad note...you simply can't help but smile and laugh at what you just experienced.

What an epic journey!!!

8 out of 10.

If you like Sonny Chiba, you will enjoy this movie. It has a slice of literally everything that made 70s movies cool: martial arts, action & stunts, horror with gore, crime/detective mystery, revenge, Yakuza, and even a bit of X-Files. Imagine R-rated Blade mixed with Shaft, starring Sonny Chiba and made in Japan. It is wonderfully weird and unapologetic.

Everytime you think you have this movie figured out it throws you a new curveball.

The fight scenes are classic Sonny Chiba, hard hitting and realistic. Whoever in the special effect department that was in charge of blood was working overtime.

And the viral "Sonny Chiba eating a steak" video ain't even the tip of the iceberg.