Machine Girl is all about fighting bullies. Fighting bullies really really hard, with guns, an armgun to be precise. To quote Wikipedia; According to writer and director Iguchi, the idea for The Machine Girl went back to a simple idea he had about a one-armed girl in a bikini looking for revenge. The idea for the machine gun arm came later. Now you know what kind of ride you are in for!
Tokyo Shock has to be one of my favorite horror/gore publishers out there. With a delightful Japanese twist, things like Machine Girl are given a platform! The story is a simple one. A girl has a brother, brother gets bullied, one day he gets bullied so hard that he is killed, girl seeks revenge. Sadly girl loses her arm, but then she gets a machine gun one instead. Now that she is packing lead and being part machine it is time to kick some bully ass in the goriest way possible.
In the west, most splatter movies are pretty low-budget and grimy. Here we’re treated to a buffet of drill bra fighting, kung-fu fighting, and of course plenty of stupid oneliners accompanied by weird Japanese humor. The acting can be considered a bit sup-par at times but it makes up for it by simply having fun and creative characters. No cardboard cutouts here. Or it might be cutouts just that I cannot see it since I am not of the Japanese culture. The music is kickass, the practical effects are hilarious, and the story is over-the-top in the best way possible. You know what is going to happen, you just don’t know HOW it is going to happen.
Machine Girl is a treat to the senses. It balances good gore and a hilarious storyline extremely well. If you enjoy good splatter accompanied by some good ol’ Japanese weirdness then this is for you. I hope that I will be able to cover more Tokyo Shock stuff in the future! But until then, stay safe and avoid any girls with drill bras or machine gun arms.
