The Pinky Violence Collection : Delinquent Girl Boss - Worthless to Confess. by Kazuhiko Yamaguchi

Teen Melodrama, then stylish revenge movie, for this final review of 'The Pinky Violence Collection'; due out in America from Panik House on R1 DVD November 15th 2005. Yamaguchis' European influence shines through, and there's a lot of references of influences from other popular Japanese Directors too. Very nicely told, beautifully shot and lit in a way that portrays the backstreets of Shinjuku so effectively it's hard not to feel absorbed in the girls' hand-to-mouth existence in the clubs, bars and strip-joints. Again, there's a large Yakuza element to the narrative, and not necessarily and particularly strong female individual - it's a group that is brought together as the narrative gathers pace, and it's at this point the personalities shift and characteristics revealed - culminating in a stunningly stylish finale that's a real highlight.

The Approach :

Straight in with this section, as was the case yesterday, because the Yakuza are here again. So, semi-tempted to say 'retraction' and take it back that 'Criminal Woman - Killing Melody' is a Yakuza movie. At least it seems that with Pinky Violence movies, the Yakuza are a regular catalyst or a male antagonistic force to play event off the women and generally get things mixed-up a little. So, are Pinky Violence movies strictly an off-shoot of Yakuza movies? Probably.

This particular films a teen melodrama to some extent, a little kooky and sentimental, but that's the general sheen over something that has musical and visual comparisons (particularly the music) with European or British movies of the 60s, and it also has a little familiar Japanese tint in their (perhaps some Seijun Suzuki references, influences or just blatant rip-offs of). As with 'Criminal Woman' the coloring is largely neutral or high contrast, though here there's a little return to the vibrant colors that all low-budget film makers like to use to tie things together in colorful style.

Not having seen a Yamaguchi movie before, I am impressed with his action and drama sequences, and it's only when things get relatively pedestrian that his imagination stops or stutters somewhat. There's some sequences in here that are the highlight of the set, particularly the finale which is beautifully lit and dynamically shot. It also seems this wasn't the first time he turned his hand to this series, and this is the final one of the run (not necessary to have seen them all, though it would flesh the characters), so the powers that be must have been impressed. A very solid and, when in more open environments, particularly cinematic and emotive production. Few quibles with how certain elements drop in and out, the humour is unnecessarily upfront and politically incorrect, some characters just appear or disappear too quickly, and in general the film only gathers pace and quality over its running time to culminate in a very satisfying film.

The Story :

Rika is a prisoner who has developed a relationship with a small band of girls, and as they individually immerge from doing time they set up their new lives in the clubs, bars, strip joints and general chaos of the neon-lit back street of Shinjuku, events begin to kick-off. Muraki, the father of Rikas' friend Midori, owns a garage and is in debt to the Ohya - a local Yakuza Group intent on financially wiping Muraki out of his ownership of the land on which his garage sits - and invites Rika to stay with him and work alongside him too. Midori is estranged from Muraki, her father, and married to a member of the Ohya too.

Alongside the struggles of their lives, the story is about the attempts and sacrifices Muraki makes in order to set the girls in the right direction, and it's touchingly told and perhaps not entirley clear or focused until it begins to resolve in the later stages. A few additional small characters add the comedy touches I found so unnecessary, this includes Masao - the backwards peeping tom, and a couple of extremely camp club staff at Ginza Girls, one of the places the nightlife scenes revolves around and where the Ohya Business Office is located too.

It's not until the later third of the movie that it's more obvious this group of friends that comprises Rika, Midori, Mari, Senmitsu and Choko may have been in place since earlier movies. It's also at that point that things shift and become a whole lot more interesting, less melodramatic in a teen drama sense and more dramatic in a stylish and substantial form, more adult and considered at least. The battle between society and the girls' way of life is engagingly told, and the characters themselves, although reasonably thin, serve their purpose and never entirely out-stay their welcome. The sudden evolution and twists in personality are deftly told and utilised well, perhaps suggesting things shifted too late and leaving the last part of the movie with me feeling it didn't used its greatest assets until a little too late.

The Characters :

They all suffer from a certain amount of stereotyping for a large duration of the narrative, and offer a familiar and reasonably solid affair. Again, the later stages of the film switches things around and different aspects of their personalities become much more confidently portrayed, and with greater maturity or style. Not necessarily any particular character that dominates my memories of the film, but in this ending or culmination of the story, it's Muraki who gells it all together and makes the story suddenly make sense, so he gets my vote for most interesting concept - even if he did look a little indistinct at first. Each of the girls' situations is different enough to show definable characters, and it's only slightly difficult to distinguish them all (similar-sounding names), ultimately they're tied together by similar circumstance and they have their own little sub-stories too.

Overall :

Another different example of the genre, another entertaining film, grows well over its' duration and makes for a satisfying experience once its all played out. As a set, it's hard to see why they're regarded as worthy of sitting together instead of releasing singularly. It's somewhere between appearing to be a set intended to cover all the bases, and being just a convenient way to package together films which are actually pretty hard to communicate an entire sense of, as they're not just oddities - they're thoroughly odd, and blend so much into the mix that there's never as easy place to refer to in order to contextualise or compare to; even within the set, and not necessarily anywhere within the genre either.

Really tough writing these reviews, and to some extent I would have so tempted to have watched them all and simply said, 'yep, you need to see these and make up your own mind - they're stunning'. In fact the longer I go on about them, the more likelihood there is that just one snippet will be isolated and put some people off because of the briefest of aspects, and really there's an overall picture in everyones mind into which these films will doubtless have some influence. They're good entertainment and they're probably going to shift many peoples interpretation and understanding of popular Japanese Cinema too. Highly recommended - yes, set of the year for me.

'Delinquent Girl Boss : Worthless to Confess' Trailer : Quicktime Small (9.9mb) / Large (18.8mb).

The original text for the Japanese titles is : ズベ公番長　懺悔の値打ちもない.

'The Pinky Violence Collection' information is at the Panik House Official Website.

The Pinky Violence Collection : Terrifying Girls' High School - Lynch Law Classroom. by Norifumi Suzuki (1973). R1 USA DVD Review at ScreenAnarchy.

The Pinky Violence Collection : Girl Boss Guerilla. by Norifumi Suzuki (1972). R1 USA DVD Review at ScreenAnarchy.

The Pinky Violence Collection : Criminal Woman - Killing Melody. by Atsushi Mihori (1973). R1 USA DVD Review at ScreenAnarchy.