Rock 'n' Roll!!!!
Okay, you're going to have to bear with me on this one, as I'm going to attempt to describe the indescribable. First off, here's a Guitar Wolf video for the song "All Through the Night Buttobase!!" which features behind the scenes shots of the movie I'm about to attempt to review, Wild Zero. (It's not particularly work safe as it has scenes of minor zombie gore.)So, Wild Zero, eh?
Basically, the only way to describe this movie is that it's Rock'n'Roll High School meets Plan Nine from Outer Space meets Evil Dead 2 meets Night of the Living Dead meets Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
I'll let you try to take all that in, as I know it's a lot to comprehend in one sentence.
Basically, what we have is an indie horror, SF, comedy, action, romance vehicle for the Japanese punk band, Guitar Wolf, who are essentially a cartoonier version of the Ramones mixed with early Joan Jett. (I'd say the Jesus & Mary Chain as well, but they've never been listed as an influence.) Feedback and distortion with a 4/4 beat in a 3 minute package is what we're talking about.
Basically, aliens are invading and using zombies to do it. Ace, our protagonist, is caught up in this plot and calls in his heroes, Guitar Wolf, to save the day. Also involved are his love interest Tobio (who has a not-so-secret secret, if you pay attention), a pair of losers in love, an arms dealer, and a manager/promoter with a massively homicidal grudge against the band.
The one thing I can describe to explain this all would unfortunately be a spoiler for the end of the movie. Let's just say that it involves a guitar, a katana, and the alien mothership. The next best thing would be jet power.
Yes, jet power.
We have motorcycles that spew flames, we have cars that spew flames, and we even have a mic that spews flames. We also have CG exploding heads, guitar pick energy shuriken (don't ask), and puppy love. (Thankfully, that part doesn't involve actual puppies, or any other sort of unnatural acts involving animals.) Also, there's the kick ass garage punk soundtrack that never ends, and adds Dick Dale to mix. As you know, like monkeys, everything's better with Dick Dale's surf guitar.
Wild Zero is a movie that will polarize, and that's probably an understatement. It goes places that you'd never expect, and it does things that just don't make sense in any rational sense of the word. That's not to say that this is an incoherent mess, as that would be far too easy. This film is an exercise is pure controlled chaos, and it succeeds in a mighty way.
That said, don't go into this movie expecting to like it, as it's just not one of those types of movies. It's intelligently stupid, and maturely juvenile. It goes out of its way to be odd, stylish, and, well, 'rock'n'roll'. It's about as alternative a movie can get without leaving the mainstream, but at the same time, I'm not even remotely sure this movie is mainstream.
I knew this was going to happen.
I knew I couldn't form a coherent review for the movie that I've watched twice in past 24 hours.
What I do know is that I'm giving it *** out ****.
Rock'n'roll!!!
(My next review will be of the original Gojira, and probably the American version as well, but first I sleep.)
posted by Jason @ 12:05 AM
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