AD Police Files (1990) Anime OVA Review

AD Police Files is a three-episode OVA series from 1990 that takes place in the same universe seen in Bubblegum Crisis, it’s actually a prequel, something evident since it revolves around Boomers, and produced by the same company but done by a different creative team to keep the franchise alive. It's hard to say that it fits our blog because it doesn't have the main group of girls as protagonists, it really only features a few characters from the original show, like Leon, but it's quality makes it worthwhile as it is mostly an anthology series focusing on a different case involving the fictional police force, the ADvanced Police, from the franchise.

In the first episode, The Phantom Woman, some officers encounter a horny prostitute boomer who get her biochemical balance all screwed up because of her sexual desire, setting her loose and going into killing sprees. In the second episode, The Ripper, a serial killer stabs and mutilates girls, a young policewoman is on the case as she believes the culprit is human due to the sensation that there are feelings involved. The third episode, The Man Who Bites His Tongue, is basically the animated cliffnotes of Robocop, but evil, showing an officer named Billy being turned into a Boomer and losing his humanity and self-control. This last one is probably the weakest because it's kind of derivative but it's still very well done.

Ultra-gory, deranged and grotesque, this untamed OVA series is kind of a very strange concentration of the things that were presented in Bubblegum Crisis but condensed in a shorter running time and increasing the filth, devoid of any established main character and nearly completely undomesticated. Right out of the gate we are presented with violent and bloody images that add to its grisly tone, mixing in some sleazy eroticism and sexual references or allusions throughout.

The fact that it's a very short anthology series, completely episodic, means that you won't get to really relate or know the protagonists to a deeper degree but in 20 minutes you understand them because of the very on point and well-crafted storyline and characterizations that allow the characters to breathe and live in such a short span of time. The length isn't an issue when it comes to simply being entertained by the show but I do wish they delved deeper into the potentially interesting characters, like the police lady with a robotic arm or the sweet officer from the second one. They have what it takes for a complete series or at least to carry a movie or longer OVA but here they are essentially just minor compared to the plot, which is the focus.

While not entirely successful, this attempt at expanding the world of Bubblegum Crisis will probably deliver the treats as the animation and subject matter are both juicy but you won't get to invest much in the storylines as they go by pretty fast. Recommended if that's what you are looking for.

City Cops (1989) Movie Review

City Cops (also known as Fight to win, Beyond the Law and Free Fighter) is a 1989 action comedy film direct by Chia-Yung Liu (credited as Lau Kar-Wing), who was a very prolific stuntman and choreographer in the Kong Kong film industry, working in a variety of martial arts classics. His directorial output mostly consisted of action mixed with goofy humor, something very palpable in this flick. 

The film starts Rothrock in her usual character of Cindy, but we also have another female action star, Michiko Nishiwaki, a martial artist and bodybuilder seen in films like Charlie's Angels (2000), My Lucky Stars (1985), In the Line of Duty 3 (1988), Angel Terminators (1992), Outlaw Brothers (1990), Princess Madam (1989) and several more in the genre. She plays Michiko, a henchwoman who mostly appears near the end of the film but her role is very memorable.

FBI agent Cindy (Rothrock) is sent to Hong Kong in order to find a mafia boss and bring him to justice. However, she has to team up with a pair of questionable Hong Kong officers. Together they face the yakuza and the mafia.

Right out of the gate one has to mention the effective and well done fight choreographies, they are lively and fun. Actually, the fights and the rest of the movie inhabit the same zone, everything has the same tone and rhythm. The action is so casual and blends so much with it´s comedy that it's hard to figure out what's supposed to be a set-piece or a throwaway joke that involves fighting (the bar scene is a good example). This is sometimes the case with Hong Kong films, as they incorporate the stunts to the stories in such an organic manner.

The comedy is hit or miss, but the main flaw is that when it misses it tends to drag for a bit too much (even when it hits sometimes as well), so if you don't have the stomach for a lot of the silly humor in these Hong Kong flicks then I suggest you watch only the fight scenes because this one overdoes it a few times.

Visually, I think City Cops stands out slightly more than the average outing. There's some good cinematography, inventive use of color, shadows and light that give the movie a pretty look but this is only noticeable occasionally as the rest isn't very special in that department.

Rothrock shines here once more, with a lot of amusing moves, and her dialogue scenes are just as entertaining thanks to a relatively decent script by Barry Wong (Yes, Madam!, Righting Wrongs, She Shoots Straight), a script that unfortunately (and despite its better moments) falls into cliche territory when Rothrock isn't present. She isnt in a lot of the movie, so don't expect her to carry the overall film like in Lady Reporter (1989), although, we can still consider her one of the main leads.

Cynthia's final fight with Nishiwaki is probably the best part, the entire climax (as expected) is a great peak and pretty much makes every flaw worthwhile. I think it's a pretty unmissable moment in action women cinema, if anything just because it puts two icons together in a fantastic fight. 

I recommend it mostly for the final stretch, but the rest of the film (while a bit trite) isn't awful, there´s enough creativity and funny moments to say that it's a decent picture overall.

The Inspector Wears Skirts (1988) Movie Review

Today we take a look at the peculiar mix between Police Academy and a Hong Kong Policewomen movie. The Inspector Wears Skirts, produced by Jackie Chan and directed by Wellson Chin Sing-Wai (Prince of the Sun, Super Lady Cop, Inspector Wears Skirts sequels), the film starred Sibelle Hu (Dreaming the Reality, Lethal Panther, China Heat, Fatal Mission), Kara Ying Hung Wai (My Young Auntie, Clan of Amazons), Regina Kent (Club Girls), Ellen Chan (Naked Soldier), Ann Bridgewater (Thunder Cops II) and Sandra Kwan Yue Ng (She Shoots Straight, Peking Opera Blues).

Cynthia Rothrock is also in this film, but she only has a brief appearance at the beginning of the movie and before the third act (even though she gets top billing), but she is such a highlight you honestly don't mind she is absent for a big chunk of the film.

As it's the case with most other Hong Kong exploitation films, the film has a few alternate titles like Top Squad and Lady Enforcers. 

Madam Wu is in charge of creating a new squad team completely made of women, previously unseen because of discrimination but now needed to aid in special missions. The girls recruited will have to prove themselves and face the harassment of the local Tiger Squad as well as Officer Wu's tough training in order to become the best commando around.

As thrilling and silly as any other Hong Kong martial arts action flick but not as solid as the best. The difference being that it lacks the interesting narrative with more noteworthy subjects and themes movies like Yes, Madam! (1985) have, it's also not as deliriously joyful as a Godfrey Ho film like Angel Enforcers (1989), which actually had a better story and more dazzling fights. Most of its plot is very generic and routine, a typical plotline about a first all female commando, troop or army in the modern world. The comedy isn't a strong point (a lot of repetitive and overdone gags) and the logic is sometimes not very believable. 

Certain elements are also somewhat dated, sometimes delivering some rather misogynistic, homophobic and sexist moments, not to mention the stereotypes and badly written girl talk, while other times it goes fairly deep into the feminist aspects. It may come off as very obsolete and probably naive nowadays because of its less progressive aspects. Although, to be fair, the sexist ideas aren't portrayed to be correct, quite the contrary, and there´s nothing truly hurtful or awful about it´s representation in a general sense but details on top of details ruin it.

Bottom line, you can tell a man wrote it, but it's not a horrible entry in the microgenre of action movies consisting only of a women's commando, even if it's flawed and very confused. Weirdly enough, in this regard I think the Americans had the upper hand with some surprisingly more feminist films like The Doll Squad (1973) and Corman's women in prison movies. I still think Yes Madam! is the champion in this field and the best movie we have reviewed here coming from Hong Kong (aside from Come Drink With Me maybe).

The action sequences are as good as ever, but they are not a complete focus this time around. The training sequences make up for it by being just as gripping with all the clever tests and activities the girls do. There´s some very competent and diligent direction work here. 

The romance subplots, the musical numbers, the dumb jokes and the lack of action really bring down the movie a few pegs. Some might argue that the bad parts are entertainingly bad, but I still say they are unnecessary and too long to be funny. It sometimes comes close to delivering an interesting and poignant thought that could make it great satire (the karate encounters, the nightclub scenes, the goofy and horny military men), but it's so clumsy at the execution that the idea gets lost in the silliness.

It's no secret that the script is probably one of the weakest parts of the film, with the dialogue and the plot being faulty at times, but it's not surprising considering the lack of credits in screenwriter Kam Fu Cheng's career, so it's sort of good he didn't write the following sequels.

While it doesn't work well for some of the runtime and while one could say it wastes the potential hidden in this good concept, it's entertaining enough and delivers the pieces of action you wanna see if you like this type of flick. So ultimately I gotta say that it's not one that would completely disappoint fans of the genre. So it is mildly recommended if you can look past its defects.

The film was a hit in Hong Kong and worldwide because of it's premise, it spawned three more sequels and kickstarted some careers as well.