I.K.U. I Robosex

If you look at the box art and read the description this movie sounds like a Japanese "Barbarella" with sex scenes. Instead what you get is a silly porn masquerading as art. The problem is it is not good enough to be great porn or great art. The sex scenes are lifeless and forced, even for porn standards. And the qualities that should make it rise above porn status are lacking. The "high tech" graphics are cheesy, desktop animated, three- dimensional renders over live action video. Even in 2000 the look of these graphics is outdated and poor. The anything that would give it a story is non-existent, meaning you get an hour and a half of lame sex scenes, but nothing to connect them to some plot or story like the box suggests. In the end you are left wondering why watched it when there are many other actual science fiction movies, or actual porn movies for that matter, that actually achieve their intended goal. This just falls short of both!

I know its possible to have a serious movie that has explicit sex in it. I encounter these enough to know that they should exist and I am glad of it.

Its a bit different when the intent of a film is to serve a prurient need outside of the context of what we consider "real" movies. Porn is usually discriminated from other films by existing outside of the need for story. This isn't quite right because there's always story, its just with porn the stories the viewer brings are so strong and deep that they only have to be referenced in the briefest of shorthands. These stories and shorthands interest me because the implied stories are (I think) complex and the shorthands are clean, universally understood and succinct in their visual form.

So I spend time with films that purport to mix porn and real storytelling. Michael Ninn impressed. Max Candy maybe. Some single projects from the 70s.

Now this. Its unapologetically porn, but on the softish side. What's interesting is that if you take it as porn it seems to deliberately cancel itself because (like "Sex Psycho") it covers so many types of sexual encounter that it is bound to offend whatever story a porn-inclined viewer will bring.

The story thread of this is clever enough to warrant description. Its designed as if it were a chapter in a "Bladerunner" world: replicants designed for (or at least adapted for) sex. The story is pretty complex, not in what you see but in what is explained. A replicant takes on seven bodily forms, so as to collect a variety of intense orgasms (apparently the Japanese term for orgasm is iku). The purpose of this is to transfer them to a pill so an evil corporation can make money and gain power. By transferring the orgasmic knowledge to the company, the replicant will buy her freedom.

The "Bladerunner" allusions are scant except for one critical piece in the very beginning where we (and it seems the replicant's control) encounter an origami crane from "Bladerunner." If you know that movie, you'll know that the crane plays a key role in switching the whole focus of the story from that of the theatrical release to a radically different and more exciting one in the "director's cut." I won't detail the shift here, but it had to do with shifting into the realm of directed dreams. And that's big when it comes to stylish porn. Worth looking into.

Speaking of "into," for some reason the filmmaker chose to have a repeated effect of a woman's (and one a man's) "insides" as penis/hand/probe thrusts. Its a puzzling choice.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

Well I am not sure I got that right - sex explored? May be closer to what the movie is actually about (no pun intended). Also be very aware that this is quite explicit. A lot of nudity in this, but also quite a bit of penetration. Not sure if it is a stylistic choice or if they pay "homage" to japanese porn, when they obscure some of the actual sex act itself ... but I'm giving you the information, so you won't be surprised/appalled or whatever else you may come up with (sorry for the pun).

I don't think you will come to many or new conclusions watching this. But I do think the filmmaker tried to make us aware of stuff ... I just couldn't tell you what that would be exactly apart from certain cliches. The whole robot/android thing trying to figure out love (or rather sex or intimacy I reckon) ... well again, not sure what to make of it.

I also don't think there is much enticement or excitement - there are probably other/better places to look for that. Also there are glimpses of homo-erotic going on here ... even if most is heterosexual. Again just a heads up to anyone who needs to know.

This movie was truly frightening. It was very hardcore. There were many scary sex scenes. If you want to see a sci-fi porn, then this one is for you.

Watch out for some scenes that might offend you. Get your remote ready because you'll need to forward some scenes. All I can say is that this movie is graphic and if you can handle a crazy movie like this than go right ahead.

I will recommend this movie to some, but not to all. I could handle it, can you?

This experimental sex movie is kind of a sequel to Blade runner. It's book-ended by scenes that are a cheesy homage to the film and the sex robots are supposedly replicants. It's very funny at times and is certainly diverting with it's relentless intercutting of neo-psychedelic special effects with wild camera angles, but this soon all wears a bit thin. Mercifully the version I saw was only 73 minutes long. I enjoyed it and found it exciting but soon started looking at my watch when it was apparent that nothing was really going to happen beyond sex scene after sex scene.