Yôjû toshi

This film is one of the more interesting Japanese animated films I've seen recently, though not necessarily in either a good or bad way. The setting and overall tone is very much along in line with the likes of Ghost in the Shell or Akira. It takes place in a dark, dystopian Japan far into the future.

The film follows a secret agent of sorts. He is recruited for a mission pertaining to a peace accord in Tokyo between Earth and a different realm. He is partnered with a humanoid female agent from the different realm. Their job is to safely escort an important ambassador (who turns out to be a perverted old man) to the peace accord so that the two realms can negotiate a treaty. However, there are beings from the other realm not too keen on making peace who set out to prevent the old man from making it to the accord. Adventure ensues.

This movie contains mild amounts of nudity and violence, so it is NSFW by all accounts, although nothing too outrageous is shown. Despite the dark atmosphere, it manages not to take itself too seriously. The perverted old man, while a cliché in Japanese anime and manga, is a likable enough character.

However, both the male and female leads are rather boring characters. Their inevitable romance feels cliché and forced. There really is no build-up for their relationship. The whole Romeo-and-Juliet "forbidden love" component here kind of falls flat. It has been done way too many times and comes off as uninspired and unoriginal.

That all being said, this movie does have some pretty badass animation, which is its saving grace. If you are watching this movie for a great storyline, you will more than likely walk away disappointed. If you are into dark, gory Japanese manga and animation, this may be right up your alley. I wouldn't write this film off, but I wouldn't necessarily want to watch it again. It wasn't particularly memorable either.

Other than having City in the titles there really is not all that comparable to the two films. I have to say I enjoyed that film more as it was action packed and had very nice visuals. This one though does get points for the excessive violence and nudity as that film was devoid of nudity and the violence never did get all that bad in that film. This movie has two agents from two different companies as it were assigned to protect this strange old man. The catch, well one agent is human, and the other is some sort of being from another dimension. One could probably call her a demon and all the other crazy people in the movie. The old man the two are assigned to protect provides the humor in the film as he is one horny old dude, and while the action is not quite as fast paced as Demon City what there is of it is usually violent and bloody. As I stated there is sex and nudity in this film, but it comes in really small scenes not really long enough to make much of an impact thus I would not really call this movie a Hentai film, which is usually an anime film that has so much sex in it, that it is almost a porn flick and this one certainly does not contain that much sex. The story needs a longer runtime to it as it kind of goes by to quickly with little explanation in areas that need more explaining as I am sure not still what the other people are supposed to be. However, it entertains in a fun way, just not as fun as Demon City.

If you're a fan of classics like Ninja Scroll or Akira, you'll likely get a kick out of Wicked City. It's your typical extreme 80's anime. Twisted story, great action, tons of nudity and sex, and some memorable characters. The art style still holds up wonderfully.

Kawajiri outdid himself in this "retold" story of Demon City Shinjuku. Personally I am not clear on which came first, but I was exposed to Supernatural Beast City first. And let me tell you, exposed it the word for this film. It is a film filled with government agents, otherworldly beings, incredible gore, and incredible sex. If any anime other than Urotsukidoji deserves being called "Hentai" it's this film. If you are one with a strong stomach for violence and mayhem, watch this film. I personally enjoyed watching this thoroughly but I would not make it a date feature... unless you really wanted to scare her away. Note: last I checked, only the dubbed version was available through Orion - no subbed version was ever marketed here in the U.S.

Wicked City is one of my favorite anime movies of all time, and here's why: if this movie didn't have a solid plot, it'd be hentai. As it is, it's borderline hentai. But what makes it so radically different is that the adult content is weaved in with the plot - there's only one scene of sex that has no pertinence to the story. This movie was ingeniously done. Solid story, great eye candy.