Kuro no tenshi Vol. 1

This is a film about 3 women who are all inextricably linked together. Taken from her mother at birth the first woman named "Ikko Amaoka" (Riona Hazuki) watches as her grandfather and bodyguards are all shot in front of her when she is only 6 years old. She is saved by the second female who is a Yakuza assassin by the name of "Mayo" (Reiko Takashima) who is also known as "the Black Angel". Knowing that there is no safe place in Japan for the little girl, Mayo arranges transportation for Ikko to Los Angeles where she is cared for until she is 20 years old. At that time Ikko returns to Japan with the intent to kill all of those responsible for the murder of her family which includes the 3rd woman, "Chiaki Amaoka" (Miyuki Ono) who also happens to be her step-sister. Now, initially this was somewhat difficult to understand because of the fast-paced violence combined with the language barrier. However, as the movie continues it eventually explains itself and all of the pieces of the puzzle come together at the very end. At any rate, those who enjoy action movies will probably like this film. Be advised though that there is quite a bit of violence along with some sex and nudity as well. Overall, I rate the film as slightly above average.

Indeed a nice vengeance flick, the director made it possible to make it interesting, stylish and very cold. The story is quite simple and not very fresh, but the style and strong violence (strong in my eyes cause it's against a woman) plus good camera work and very cold pictures make it a bit more special than a lot of the other Japanese movies. It reminds me of the earlier movie GONIN, witch is at any rate commendable if you liked the BLACK ANGEL and of course takeshi kitano). I've now seen a few of his films (ishii) and have to say that he's a good director in my eyes, but don't match to make every film interesting. I like his cold depressing style, but he's not a very good story teller. If you like the vengeance theme and the described style than you've got to check it out.

This is part one of Takashi Ishii's "Black Angel" double feature. The two films aren't connected by characters, just a similar general plot focused on female killers. Both films have a low-budget feel to them, and evoke moods in much the same way that Wong Kar-Wai's "Chungking Express" films do.

Ishii really does a lot with this film even though it is considerably based on action movie cliches. Fortunately he manages to breathe some life into it with some excellent camera work (including a particularly well-filmed continuous shot), and the great performances of Riona Hazuki and Reiko Takashima (as the two main female protagonists).

One particular scene of note: Early in the film Ishii breaks up the heavy crime drama with a strangely placed song and dance number that is composed of one long 3 minute shot, from one angle. Very strange. It actually made me think of François Truffaut's "Shoot the Pianot Player." Early in that film a ridiculous dance number in the bar breaks up the tension in much the same way.

Black Angel is a film that represents the best of what Japanese contemporary cinema can be. It is that rare thing - an action movie that contains depth, character and intellect. The characters are all fully rounded, fleshed out and fallible. They are shades of grey, rather than black or white, and this ambivalence only lends to their realism. They even have to take time to recover after they receive a beating! It is a testament to Takashi that he can produce such empathy for these characters. His direction is polished and at times superb. One scene employs a single 8 minute take with no edits to emphasize the effect of relativity that the protagonist must be encountering on her fruitless attempts to escape and it is inspired. Takashi's trademark use of wide angle lenses is also at an apex in this movie, serving to enhance the effect of bodily movements while at the same time trapping the characters between the foreground and background, thereby outlining their plight (their lack of freedom is rooted in their desire to fulfil their destiny yet at the same time despising what they do). The violence is balletic and certainly tips it's hat to the Hong Kong heroic bloodshed movies of John Woo, et al but Takashi manages to make the set pieces his own by incorporating these formalistic camera techniques into realistic circumstances to draw the viewer into the world he has created. This is similar to Scorcese's "Raging Bull" where extremely formalistic techniques create a very realistic impression on the audience. The story deals with some familiar themes from Japanese cinema (revenge, rape, male-female power relations, etc...) and Takashi's use of motifs helps to relate the characters to one another and outline their connections. Even the title relates to the dichotomy facing our protagonist. The internal conflict of Ikko is mirrored by the external conflicts upon which she embarks. Black Angel is well conceived, well shot and well acted and deserves to be ranked among contemporary Japanese cinema's finest.

As the daughter of a Yakuza boss, six year odd Ikko witnesses the slaughter of her parents. Hey dying bodyguard is able to whisk her away from the carnage and give her to Mayo, a hit-women who goes by the codename of "Black Angel" to send to Los Angelos, warning Ikko not to think of vengeance when she gets older, before dying in a fire ravaged car. Now as a young woman (Riona Hazuki of the less then stellar "Parasite Eve") she returns to Tokyo ,along with her boyfriend Zille, to seek revenge despite what she was told and takes the name of Black Angel in honor of the woman who saved her. The action is there, the story is there, but for some reason the film didn't really click for me. The pacing seems to be off a tad. It's not bad but I enjoyed Takashi Ishii's "Freeze me", and "Angel Guts" films a tad more.

My Grade: C+

DVD Extras: Trailers for "Wild Criminal", "Blood", "Score", and "Reborn from Hell"

Eye Candy: Miyuki Ono shows breasts an extra also bares fleeting boobage