There are few things that I would rather
see than chicks kicking ass. It doesn’t matter whose
ass is being kicked, or why. I just want to see some women
taking charge. It’s my fetish – I admit.
Knowing this, I was more than excited to get an opportunity
to screen an advance copy of The
Pinky Violence Collection, Panik House’s
first box set compiling four “Sukeban” films.
To quote myself from that release: “I applaud
the publisher for this package, and easily rank it in my top
10 releases of 2005.” I still stand by that statement,
but the asking price on the package was a bit high for the
uninitiated viewer. Thankfully, almost a year later, they
have decided to release the four films separately. One of
these films is Girl Boss Guerilla.
Girl Boss Guerilla is one of Reiko
Ike’s first films, and it certainly is fun. The story
revolves around a girl motorcycle gang who do what motorcycle
gangs do – break the law. Sometimes they use their womanly
charms, but often they use violent force. When the Red Helmet
Gang strays too  far
from their turf, they end up stepping on the feet of a rival
gang. After a catfight, the Red Helmets are the victors and
the rival gang is absorbed into their ranks. Together, this
new ‘supergang’ runs the streets of Kyoto –
a fact that doesn’t bode well with a Yakuza gang leader
who just happens to be the brother of the rival gang's boss.
Despite their rocky start, the two girl gang leaders become
good friends. When the Red Helmet leader falls in love with
a boxer in training, the couple does their best to hide it.
Naturally, though, something quite awful happens to her new
beau, and you can bet that all sorts of asses get kicked in
bloody vengeance.
One of the fantastic aspects of this film is the relationship
between stars Reiko Ike and Miki Sugimoto, who play the rival
gang leaders. These two make up the cornerstone of Sukeban
actresses, and their rival characters were often over-dramatized
off-screen in an effort to get people talking about these
films. Between 1972 and 1973, they starred in five films together.
What separates Girl Boss Guerilla from the
others is the true “sister” like feeling that
the two share. Sure, they fight at first, but the girls have
a strong sense of kinship, not just respect like in the other
films.
 Like
all the films in the Sukeban genre, I enjoyed Girl
Boss Guerilla quite a bit. Much of it is standard,
but it had that great girl-gang, tough-bitch material like Switchblade Sisters or Faster Pussycat,
Kill, Kill. Criminal nuns, full-breast tattoos, thievery,
extortion, and overall delinquency make for an insane amount
of fun. The action is fairly steady throughout, so it never
gets boring. There is even a ridiculous music segment. While
not as cartoonish as Terrifying Girls’ High
School, it features unreal silly moments balanced
very well with the standard vengeance atmosphere. It isn’t
the strongest Sukeban film, but it is certainly worth a look.
The DVD Presentation
The presentation of Girl Boss Guerilla is fantastic, and I can’t think of a way it could be
improved. The video is presented in its scope aspect ratio
anamorphically enhanced. The picture is quite clear. I noticed
no compression issues, or even much film grain. Beautiful!
The audio may only be mono, but it sounds extremely good and
clear; just don’t expect your surrounds to dance. The
English subtitles are easy to read. What more can you ask?
And the Extras
Are?
Audio Commentary with Panik House President Matt Kennedy & Asian Cult Cinema columnist Wyatt Doyle –
Wyatt Doyle does a marvelous job with the commentary track. It’s informative, never boring, and goes in-depth with Japanese culture references, providing illuminating context for Girl Boss Guerilla. Matt Kennedy is an excellent companion to Wyatt, filling in just as much background information. All commentaries should be as comprehensive.
 Original
Theatrical Trailer – (3:06)
Every single Japanese Sukeban trailer is certifiably awesome.
Like others, this one flies with the violence and nudity.
However, it fails to show the comical elements of the story,
so the trailer makes the movie look a bit more melodramatic
than it really is.
Poster and Still Galleries –
Two poster galleries are included on this DVD. One is entitled “Posters & Promotional Art” and the other is called “Production Stills.” Neither gallery is extremely comprehensive; there are fifteen production stills, but only three images in the poster gallery. The production stills are quite nice, though, a good inclusion.
Production Notes –
This text-based feature runs for five pages and, while it does have some decent production info, it also does more than its fair share of restating what happened in the film. You aren’t likely to read this more than once.
Director and Star Bios –
Also included on this disc are bios of director Norifumi Suzuki as well as stars Reiko Ike, Miki Sugimoto and Masataka Naruse. Each of these is fairly short, but gives good background on the subjects.
Sticker –
As an added bonus, Panik House has been generous enough to supply us with a large sticker. It’s the same image as the cover art and exclusive to this release. Thanks!
Aside from the sticker, everything included here is a hold-over from the box set release. The DVD is exactly the same. People who don’t already have the box set will eat this up with a spoon.
 The
Bottom Line
I’m sure that most diehard fans of Japanese cinema already
purchased Girl Boss Guerilla when it was
included in The Pinky Violence Collection box set. But that set is out of print and difficult to find.
Thankfully, now Panik House is releasing these titles individually
and at reasonable prices. This is fantastic, and I am more
than happy that, as a result, many more potential fans will
be able to discover what others already have: Sukeban films
are some of the most fun and entertaining films out there.
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