Renzaburou Taki appears to be a regular salaryman, but in reality, he is a member of the Black Guards—a secret organization that maintains the fragile harmony between the human and demon realms. As the time to renew the peace treaty approaches, Taki is tasked with guarding the important human mystic Giuseppe Mayart, with the help of a demon woman named Makie. However, this is easier said than done; while a dangerous faction of demons has turned to terrorism in hopes of destroying the unity between the two realms, Giuseppe wants nothing more than to sneak off and fool around with women.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Karasanu
You may not consider this as an actual review , rather it's a notice. Above here you can see this anime is categorized as + mild nudity which isn't true and you will see - better not -. This anime is hentai. ... *Some minor spoliers are coming. Moaning is a main factor here. You can find a scene of around 3-4 mins of people talking in someplace with a background sound of moaning of a women being raped somewhere else. All women seemed pleasured for me. The one in the hotel ,at home , at the playboy tagged inn - sex with above 90 grandfather scene -and the one at villain people den. Either consented or raped , all weren't defending themselves and just enjoyed it.
Phill-z
One can hardly watch Wicked City without going "wow" at one point or another. Some might find this anime absolutely ludicrous, alot will find it incredibly stupid. I found it insanely entertaining. Story: To begin to talk about the story, or to even try to explain it is extremely difficult. Just try your best to understand, depending on how you look at it it's either extremely complicated, or incredibly stupid. They don't do alot of history....so don't feel bad if you're confused for parts...or most of it. I know that I was confused for alot of it. Art: Terrible art. It'smade in 1987 and the first thing that will hit you is the art. The art is horrible, but it definitely gives the anime it's feel. It's style isn't incredibly amazing, but it definitely suits the feel of the piece. It suffers from the same technique used in the Ninja Scroll movie where sometimes action is shown and the background flashes white and red which almost always makes me feel like I'm about to get a seizure.
Sound: Campy! I hate saying this but the music is absolutely perfect for the feel of this film. It's not great music, I don't even think they would have even released an OST for this, and if they did I wouldn't recommend buying it to anyone.
Character: What characters? The characters are all ridiculously 2 dimensional, they have no depth to them at all, There's really no character that's outstanding at all. They did however remind me alot of Ninja-Scroll, the short character was just as aggravating and mysterious.
Enjoyment. I totally give this 10. Because it really does deserve it. I was never bored for a single minute in this entire movie. It isn't a classic, it's not outstanding in any real way. But to watch for enjoyment it's absolutely perfect. You don't have to worry about annoying sub-plots or character allegiances or love-triangles. I watched this and I had a good time.
Overall: I wouldn't recommend this to alot of people. There's alot of nudity....a couple rape scenes. It's alot more adult than I was expecting but it was also great. It's based off of a Hideyuki Kikuchi novel, so if you're into Vampire Hunter D you'll probably get a kick out of Wicked City. I would definitly recommend this to people who are in the middle of watching a really long heavy series who just need to veg out a little.
-FlameHaze-
Story Fistly the story; after just watching this anime, I don't beleive the story was that bad - but it wasn't that good either. The story line was quite basic and there was I think two parts of the movie which made me think "oookay..." or "wow" from unexpected events. It was nothing too original, demons and humans. Some demons don't want peace, other do...then theres the romance element... three words...romeo and juliet...on the other hand this wasn't the worst storyline ever...it just wasn't original. Animation The animation on this was much better than the story line :D The artwork that went into this anime shows scene from sceneakthough it's not the best, which may be because of the age of the anime (1987 creation?) bsides that it was good.
Sound
I can't say a great deal good about the sound; theres nothing that's stuck in my head..."wow that was good", but for the same reason it wasn't that bad either since i don't recall thinking "that was awful"
Characters
In my opinion the design of the characters and personalities and how they act, it probabaly one of the best features towards this anime. Although the characters don't get explained in depth their actions through out the movie are enough for you to get an idea on their personalities. Each character has a great deal of unque traits from all other characters, and their personalities represent this effectively.
Enjoyment
Well I made it to the end, but it was nothing that I will remember as a masterpiece by far. The fact i reccomend Akira if people like this anime should be enough it it's own as a compliment towards this anime.
Luquillo
Wicked City combines horror with a film noir style, and is directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri. Those whom are familiar with this name are also likely to be aware of his later project Ninja Scroll. Ironically, Wicked City and Ninja Scroll are very similar. Those whom have seen Ninja Scroll first may feel as if they're watching it twice to a certain degree. For the reasons that the female lead Makie does serve a purpose, but she appears to be nothing more than a plot device to drive one rape scene after another despite her toughness. This is very similar to Kagero of Ninja Scroll. This alsogoes for the male lead Taki. Like Jubei from Ninja Scroll, as strong as he is, his enemies are far tougher and he mainly requires assistance to win. As a matter of fact, most of these characters features were reused for the aforementioned film.
Despite the similarities concerning characters. The two films are quite different. I will also mention early that Wicked City is one of the few anime films that I can think of, which actually meshes sex and extreme violence with a coherent plot. The anime is bathed in style, it is very atmospheric, and it takes place in a dark city environment; where shades of dark blue are used as the dominant color scheme to create that dark, moody, and sinister ambiance. Almost the entire film takes place at night. Also adding to the creepy tone, there are creatures posing as humans attempting to take men to bed, then reveal their true forms at this time. This is actually some of what works its horror edge.
Wicked City is very imaginative and creative. The demons are definitely unique and boast some wild abilities; it's something that should be seen, and spoilers should be kept low to non existent. The action scenes are brutal and at times over the top. The sex and rape scenes are graphic, but not on the level of Legend of the Overfiend which is a very, very, graphic hentai anime. Now, I don't find the scenes bad due to the graphic nature. Instead, I find them bad because they're nothing more than an excuse for random sex, and the scenes aren't really needed to push the plot.
I have about the same mixed feelings for the comedy. I found the comedy to be funny at times. However, I find it to be slightly out of place. The comedy clashes with the dark and horrific tone which was set so well in the beginning, thus removing the sense of uneasiness and terror. The comedy clearly knocks the film down a few notches for me. The plot twist that takes place towards the end is out of nowhere, yet it's effective and I doubt anyone saw that coming.
Wicked City has a very good soundtrack that does fit well with the mood of the film and several scenes. The animation is pretty fluid, and most of the battles were cool to watch. The artwork also fits the personality of the film delivering some freakish character designs. At least one character has always stuck in my mind after seeing a Kawajiri film, with this being no exception.
The backgrounds are also very good. Every thing visually seemed to blend very well and had the right feel. I don't really have any issues with the voice acting for either language; but I enjoyed the English dub a lot more. Then again, I almost always enjoy it more.
Wicked City is an anime film that took a very long time to grow on me. I'm not a fan of hentai at all, in fact I hate it. Still, I feel this film is a decent watch. If you loved Ninja Scroll then I feel this may be good for you, but once again in closing, this anime contains graphic sexual content and violence that will not appeal to many. I recommend skipping it if that's not your thing. This is for those whom love violence, fan service, and porn in their anime.
Highs: Very good action, stylish, imaginative & creative characters
Lows: Easy to misjudge as mindless porn, some scenes just an excuse for porn
Shura-shurato
An more mature anime From back when this kind of genre became fairly populair in japan by underground and selective animefans, and its one of my saturdaynight favs for years on end. Good mature animation, story is somewhat predictable other than some scene´s that is just ´disturbing´just the way i like it. For a short movie in this genre it earned quite its name over the years , and MAN its just not for kids that don´t know about oldskool anime, or the kind of genre for that matter!
hinekure
Do you like 80s films with one-dimensional characters and little plot? Do you like boobs? Do you like demon ladies that somehow resemble praying mantis women with four long legs and monster mouth-vaginas that spit out spider web? Well, Youjuu Toshi (Eng: Wicked City) is probably for you. I'll admit that I really like creative, unsettling gore. That was essentially why I decided to watch this movie. I'd heard that it had some pretty freaky art, and having seen some pictures I decided to give it a shot. I was a quite disappointed. Note that this review will contain spoilers - though I don't really think there'smuch to spoil, as the plot is really weak and the only vaguely interesting thing about this film is the art.
Story: 3/10 (poor)
Believe it or not, despite how much sex/rape there is in this film, it isn't hentai for people with seriously out-there perversions. In writing a plot summary I almost can't believe it isn't a hentai. It has basically every element of a hentai - undeveloped characters, silly plot, lots of sex, rape, even tentacles for god's sake.
The story is essentially about Taki and Makie (why must they have such similar names? It's reminiscent of some kind of silly shoujo romance), two people known as "Black Guards" who come together to protect a 200-year-old perverted guy, Mayart, who is instrumental in signing a peace treaty between the demon world and the human world that is renewed every couple of hundred years. Taki is a male human who looks like every other 80's action movie protagonist. Makie is a female demon who is probably the least freaky demon in the whole film. The 'plot twist' is essentially that the governing forces want Taki and Makie to fall in love, fuck, and conceive a half-demon half-human baby, because somehow that will help the two sides get along? Terrorists from the demon world a) don't want the peace treaty to be signed, so they're trying to kill Mayart, and b) don't want a half-demon half-human baby to be born, so they're trying to stop that too. I mean, it's a bit of an eyebrow raiser, but not the most pathetic plot I've ever heard of. What makes it so meh is the way all this happens in the film.
Basically, the movie starts with Taki accidentally having sex with aforementioned praying mantis spider monster vagina lady. When he finds out, she doesn't kill him, and instead crawls off on her long as fuck legs down the side of the building. This was probably the only part of the film that met my expectations when it came to unsettling art, because it was pretty subtle and weird. Anyway, from what I gather, she slept with him so that she, a member of Terrorist Demons Inc, could use a sample of his DNA (his special sauce) to figure out if he was capable of making hybrid babies. I feel like if the terrorists suspected him, she could've just killed him right then and there, taken his DNA off and tested it to see if she got it right, and then all would be well. But nope. Also, if you think they explain how or why it's possible that this whole hybrid baby thing could happen, why the terrorists even know about it, or why there must be a 'strong spiritual bond of love' between the parents for it to work, you'd be mistaken.
Anyway, he is then assigned to protect this Mayart fellow with Makie, who says she works as a model when she's not working as a Black Guard. Why this irrelevant fact is mentioned a couple of times in the movie I don't know. Also, she says she's willing to sacrifice her life for this assignment. There's no explanation as to why it's so important to her personally. From this point onwards, this is basically what happens in the movie:
1) Makie's ex boyfriend turns up, rapes her halfway before she strangles him with her hair (she couldn't have done this before he started?)
2) Mayart sneaks off to a brothel where a demon woman half absorbs him by melting all over him. Taki somehow knows exactly which brothel he went to and turns up in time to shoot the demon woman before Mayart is forever gone.
3) On the way to a "spiritual hospital" a parasite from the demon woman that was inside Mayart (it entered his body via her tiddy) pops out to play, turns into some kind of tentacle monster, rapes Makie somewhat again as she sacrifices herself so that Taki and Mayart can escape (really slowly).
4) At the "spiritual hospital" Taki gets a message from the demon terrorists saying that Makie is their prisoner and is currently being raped by three demons that seemingly resemble traditional demons. Basically, they invite him to rescue her.
5) Taki turns up, a demon terrorist woman takes off her clothes and a giant hole that resembles a really ugly light-emitting vagina opens up in her stomach and chest. Supposedly she's testing him or something, or at least that's what the dialogue vaguely lets me believe, but that's as clear as it's made. Also, Makie is being raped in the background. Taki almost gets sucked into the giant vagina, but shoots the woman first. Bunch of demons then come at him, including the demons that were raping Makie in the background, and he defeats them with ease. Then he basically lets the head demon absorb all the power from the other demons without doing anything before he tries to defeat him. Success. Naked Makie heals his wound with her "psychic power".
6) Head demon regenerates. Only he and mantis lady remain. Mantis lady descends from the ceiling via her spider web genitals (this was weird) and tells him Taki has the right DNA.
7) Makie gets fired from the Black Guard for getting captured. Taki gets fired for abandoning his duty to rescue her. For the record, there is no development of their relationship that I haven't mentioned. At no point do they ever appear to be falling in love, but supposedly, they ARE in love, despite how little time has passed and how little they have spoken to eachother in that time. Aight.
8) On a car drive, Mayart turns out to be in the back seat, they enter a tunnel full of spider web, mantis lady tries to kill Makie and Taki. Something weird that turns out to be Mayart's powers kills mantis lady. She really looks like an insect dying on her back and it's pretty funny.
9) Makie and Taki wake up naked in a church. They do the do. Head demon pitches up. Mayart explains everything while fighting him. The long and short of it is that they kill the head demon and supposedly Makie is already pregnant. They had sex like 3 minutes ago?
Essentially, the plot almost goes nowhere, and just seems to be an excuse for some weird light hentai. I mean, it could be worse, but it's pretty pathetic as it is.
Art: 7/10 (good)
This is really the only part of this movie that wasn't pathetic. For an anime made in 1987, the art is really good. They for sure went to town when it came to the freaky elements of this movie. Quite fluid, interesting character designs. I just expected a bit more.
Sound: 4/10 (decent)
It's an 80's movie soundtrack. Nothing more. Sound effects were alright. Nothing special at all, however.
Character: 1/10 (pathetic)
As you might have guessed from the summary, the characters are crap. There is fuck all character development, both internally and interpersonally. I can't even say what the personalities of the two main characters are like whatsoever. They are completely blank. Mayart only had a smidge of character, and that was how much he wanted to have sex all the time, and I really don't count that as personality.
Enjoyment: 5/10
Everything about this movie besides the art was totally unmemorable and silly. The only reason I kept watching was for the art - that much was vaguely enjoyable.
Overall: 3.5/10
Once again, the art was the only saving grace for this film. Had it been less interesting visually, this would have been one of the most pathetic attempts at a film of all time. Unengaging, undeveloped, unexplained, and probably just plain boring all around. But if you feel like just looking at some strange, out-there-without-quite-doing-your-head-in art for an hour and twenty minutes, you'll probably find this worthwhile if you simply ignore everything else.
JTurner
Yoshiaki Kawajiri's WICKED CITY, based on a similarly titled book by Hideyuki Kikuchi (who also wrote VAMPIRE HUNTER D) has its share of devoted fans who consider this a classic in the halls of Anime, but I stand firmly behind this review. This is a disgustingly vulgar, reprehensibly distasteful, and needlessly gory animated mess with little in the way of genuine appeal. Despite a promising start and a potentially interesting plot, WICKED CITY goes all out on shock value at its most repulsive level -- to the point that whatever virtues it may have are all but forgotten. It's misogynistic as well, with extensive scenes involvinga female character being raped (three times!), and other two femme fatales who use their sexuality as a weapon to deceive and/or kill unsuspecting prey. As mentioned, it's also quite violent, with plenty of moments involving blood splattering, again for no specific reason other than violence for the hell of it. Shock value for shock value's sake does not a good film make, animated or otherwise.
Too bad, because WICKED CITY does have a few moments of redeeming qualities, although as mentioned, they aren't enough to elevate my star rating.
The film's opening half hour is arguably the best; sans again another sequence that will make one queasy. The sequence in question involves Taki Renzabur', a salesman by day, spy by night, who lands a "date" of some sort with a pretty girl at a bar after winning a bet. She takes him to her home, and, after an extensive sexual intercourse session, she transforms into some sort of monster with spidery legs. Her VAGINA, of all things, even transforms into a fearsome maw with sharp teeth! Taki survives the encounter, and his boss reminds him to "be a little more sexually cautious from now on." Shocking and revolting as that opening scene is, it is practically nothing compared to the other graphic bits that happen throughout this seemingly never-ending 80-minute "thriller."
Following that unpleasant episode, we learn that Taki is a spy for some sort of "Black Guard", which apparently helps keep tensions between humanity and the "Black World" (in other words, monsters and ghouls) in check. He is assigned to protect an ancient (200 years old) midget named Giuseppe Mayart who has come to sign a peace treaty that will ensure public safety. Taki also meets Makie, a beautiful but skilled Black World woman who becomes his partner and something much more besides. Their mission to keep Mayart safe from attacking "Radicals" who want to sabotage their efforts proves to be anything but easy. Mayart, incidentally, is a most unpleasant character. He's a repulsively lecherous, crude, and generally foul-tempered pain in the butt who arguably proves to be more troublesome than one would expect. He refuses to stay put when his guardians take him to a hotel for his own good, goes off gallivanting to a "soapland" where he gets into trouble with a demon posing as a slut, and acts contemptuously toward the people who are in his best interests.
At this point, the film devolves into a back and forth series of violent confrontations involving nasty, nightmarish creatures, mostly in the form of rapists and seductive temptresses. The most sickening of these creatures isn't even the last obstacle our heroes have to encounter. Midway through the film, Makie and Taki are attacked by some sort of "parasite" no bigger than a tongue (I kid you not) which burrows its way into the former and bursts from her stomach, transforming into a phallic tentacle which takes the unfortunate girl captive and begins to sexually assault her. As if that isn't enough to make one uneasy about seeing more, we are also treated to two other such scenes, both of which involve Makie being violated, and our hero coming to save her. And so on and on it goes, to the point where it becomes tiresome.
If this is the sort of stuff viewers of Japanese animation demand, then WICKED CITY certainly delivers, but I found it to be very off-putting and too overdone. Part of this may be because I am of the standard that works involving violence and sexual assaults should present the material in question if the plot commands for it, or at the very least doesn't do so gratuitously. Satoshi Kon's far more interesting and arguably more terrifying PERFECT BLUE found the right balance in its effort to tell a "break the innocent" sort of story in which the protagonists is subjected to such atrocities and feels rightfully terrified because of it. Here, however, the unpleasant bits are thrown at the viewer in non-stop fashion that whatever story it tries to convey ultimately becomes forgotten. That, to me, is poor filmmaking, and it's a shame that Kawajiri's efforts are wasted on such a wretched work.
To Kawajiri's credit, however, WICKED CITY does sport an appropriately gothic, smoky atmosphere. The animation, although at times limited, is smooth and legitimately frightening as opposed to being cheap and nasty. Produced by the folks at MadHouse, who are legitimately known for lavishly animated and often times disturbing series, the monsters are imaginatively drawn and while the transformations may again rub viewers the wrong way, they are at the very least convincingly depicted without looking hokey. On that level, WICKED CITY does at least excel. Kawajiri also treats the picture like a live-action movie, and it shows from the skillfully edited and choreographed action bits. It's almost enough to make the viewer forget that they're watching an animated feature.
The film, interestingly, received two different dubs around its release. The version most American viewers are familiar with are done by Streamline Pictures, while international audiences had to endure a somewhat censored cut by Manga UK. Neither is a particularly outstanding effort, but of the two, the Streamline dub, surprisingly, is more effective, which is not something I usually say when it comes to their output. Their dubs have often been hit and miss, with most of their efforts (with the exception of Fox's MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO) being in truly dreary territory. This is actually one of their better ones, with appropriately cast voices and smooth-sounding dialogue. Greg Snegoff gives Taki a very natural, tough-guy persona to match his personality, while Gaye Kruger, Mike Reynolds, and the late Jeff Winkless all excel. The Manga UK dub, on the other hand, is a seriously awful, laughable, choppy, stilted embarrassment with both bad acting as well as phony (and out of place) accents. Save for some characters like Makie and Taki's boss, everyone else is miscast. The dialogue adaptation is also needlessly profane, with smatterings of f-words every fifteen seconds as well as lines that come across as either rushed or so bad they're funny such as "Don't ever think you can win this battle, you pathetic ANIMAAAAAAAAL!" Not having seen the Japanese version, I can't say how either version compares, but if it's English you want to hear this movie in, the Streamline version is the less cringeworthy one.
Discotek Media has recently rescued WICKED CITY from the morgue of oblivion and will be including both dubs in their rerelease, with superior video quality to boot. Considering the company's track record, fans will surely be pleased. I, on the other hand, absolutely detest this film and I can not recommend it to anyone who is faint at heart or even for pleasurable entertainment. Or for ANY reason. So... take my review with a grain of salt.
Halcyon13
Sexually-charged supernatural erotica, less horror than it is an exploitation of the female body for no apparent reason besides lust. Rather inconsistent in that regard, more explicit in nonconsensual scenes compared to the rest. It makes the claim of visual metaphors in association with spiritual drivel supposedly forming a bond representing peace between two races. Taki and Makie are part of a secret service protecting an emissary needed to finalize a centennial non-aggression treaty, disguising other elaborate conspiracies of unknown nature. Such events pave the way for sadomasochistic escapades of gratuitous gore and sex, usually with demonic women. At one point, it's unashamedly tentacle pornography,not quite meshing against the backdrop of blue and red neo-noir. In the case of color coordination, Kawajiri's eye for complementary hues strikes a tension, high-speed drives as street lights zip past. The cinematography may be a single trick, but a pretty one nonetheless. Defined designs are drawn in thick lines, with characters living a rapid urban life, which happens to be the only reason it manages to be watchable, all missteps considered.
I'd argue the pressing counter to a linear narrative, one that is well-nigh impossible to ruin, is the political sphere remaining completely untouched. Acts of terrorism, even assassination attempts, come from a factional authority in the demon world. Wreaking havoc to this extent, yet retaining invisibility in the sense of diplomatic context is nonsensical. It's a product of some cyberpunk and body disfiguration elements, and Wicked City's linear clarity is its downfall. Kawajiri's standout key animation is present in a few action cuts, but unfortunately, the rest of the film suffers from bland panning shots in abundance. A shame seeing the uneven storyboarding being framed with imaginative live-action compositing, and tilted angles rarely used in commercial anime. It's a middling gimmick, not leaning towards the gruesome nor morally provocative extremes of the medium.
lawlmartz
“It is very difficult to make one's way in this world without being wicked at one time or another, when the world's way is so wicked to being with" - Lemony Snicket Preface: Names such as Tetusuro Araki, Hiroyuki Imaishi, and Hayao Miyazaki come up often when people speak of great and visionary directors. The name Yoshiaki Kawajiri is not often mentioned, but his work is definitely among the influential. While Araki and Imaishi are fairly new to the scene, Kawajiri has been at it since the 80s, and has a credit list that should be familiar to anyone who enjoys classic and quality horror/violent anime.With directorial duties in titles such as Ninja Scroll, X, Vampire Hunter D and key animator in a pair of other well knowns- Redline and the anime version of Fritz Lang's 1927 classic Metropolis, Kawajiri has certainly left his mark on the industry.
Artwork and Animation: 8
It's somewhat unusual to see an anime shot like a film, with much thought being placed into framing and camera angles, but in Wicked City, Yoshiaki Kawajiri really pulls out the stops. With a flair for camera placement and lighting, Wicked City shines- ironic for a movie that takes place entirely at night. One of the most striking things was the use of shadow and reflection. In 1987, a full 10 years before a computer was ever used to make animation, a lot of effort was put into drawing out a scene with both idle and background animation, along with people speaking and their reflections also animated.
Lots of good city scape, and the scene with the shadow projecting one of the sexual scenes onto the street with the characters animated on top of it was very cool to see as well.
The vast majority of the movie is rendered in a bluescale style, and it works excellently with the film noir style that they're going for. The eye animation is also unusually good here, where many other anime have outrageously large puppy eyes or beady slits, the character design is very human... when appropriate. The demons in Wicked City are memorably grotesque, particularly one of the later female ones. Anyone who's seen it knows exactly which one I'm referring to.
Sound and Voice Acting: 6
Nothing major to report, Toshiko Fujita and Yusaku Yara perform well as Makie and Taki, the soundtrack is effectively dark and dramatic.
Characters and Story: 5
Wicked City's story is fairly straightforward, but at the same time rather convoluted. We're never exactly told why or how these peace talks are happening between the humans and demons, or how the demons ever appeared in the first place, only that they're there, and they've been fighting humans for hundreds of years. The plot is straightforward enough though, and has a definite goal that only gets sidetracked when we need to see some skin. And there's definitely skin in this movie.
Perhaps it was included in the movie to make it more gritty and edgy, as it was in "Kite"- something to add shock value. While the sexual content definitely steps over the boundary into gratuitous, some of it does lead to some darkly comedic results, which lessens the blow. There is a role for it to play though, and it ties up later in the movie, but certain parts are definitely unnecessary.
Enjoyment and Overall: 7, 6
While the original Birdy the Mighty was my introduction to Yoshiaki Kawajiri, I have to say that the tone and eye for action and setpieces that Kawajiri brings are definitely the mark of a great director. The action is excellent, and the gore effects are pretty killer too. Where Birdy was a more lighthearted but violent romp, Wicked City is a nightmare of what there is to be afraid of in the dark of night.
I don't want to meet any women from Wicked City, that's for sure.
Recommended?
If you like old school anime that are dark and violent, with some sex thrown in for filthy measure, but with a coherent story and tight camera work- Wicked City is for you.
pinemoth
Ok listen, it has great animation, good character and monster design, good voice acting, a killer soundtrack and a pretty good story (the end of the story was uhhh weird and definitely made for a certain audience) but I rated it low cause it is just rape porn!!! Omfg if only it was an actual series that wasn't just fucking rape hentai man. I watched it with a friend and we loved the story and REALLY liked the animation and soundtrack but omfg it was almost all porn and rape... Spoilers up ahead from here. I guess we should've known from the first scene being asex scene/set up for one but we gave it a benefit of a doubt cause some movies have this and it was rather tame and there was a sick fucking scene with gore and shit and loved it. The story is a really cool plot between two world and the only thing keeping them at peace is a treaty that needs to be renewed and the main character is a body guard for the person renewing it, the old dude is a pervert and a pos but not surprising with knowing what it is now. But as it keeps going, rape scenes and weird sex scenes with the ending being in heaven or some shit with a tentacles monster and we find out the body guards (op and love intrest) are supposed to have a baby to save the world ig. The story set up was great but they ruined it with some weird forced relationship and pregnancy and a whole lot of porn.
alleyesonmy
Wicked City is a stylish, well animated film that will have most viewers questioning what exactly fuels their love for anime as a whole. Regardless of if they liked the film or not. Mainly because it's an experience, so out there that it's really hard to pin down specifically what it's trying to be. The films focus on psychological horror elements, and it's full embrace of sexual themes in conjunction with the horror aspects create a really interesting film that some will find excessive. And others will find fascinating. The animation on display is smooth and appealing, with every creative choice feeling deliberate and calculated.With the colour choices for scenes specifically serving to set the mood.
While some might feel disgust toward a film like this. I am personally fascinated by this movie. While I can't possibly recommend it to everyone. It's an experience that really feeds off the different thoughts of the many people who choose to watch it.
Terajima
After watching the movie 'Neo-Tokyo' formed by three medium-length movies 'The Running Man' was the one I liked the most, so I looked what else Yoshiaki Kawajiri, its director, had done, and I chosed this movie. 'Wicked City' has that atmosphere that I liked so much in 'The Running Man', many lights, skyscrapers that illuminate the city, many neon signs, pubs with colored LEDs, roads lighted by powerful lighthouses, landing strips with red lights, in short, many lights and many colors... with that they have already got me. Then we have a typical story without too much that is interesting, that empty plot is filled with actionand sex scenes one after another. The movie is something like: a massacre, Taki fucks with one that transforms into a spider with a pussy with teeth that flood the walls, a car ride by the night lights, another carnage, the old man with whores that absorb him with his body, and again lights and more lights.
The film is not very valued by people; Maybe it's somewhat typical, but I've loved it, it has a different touch, a certain class and eighties visual and sonorous elegance that not too many movies has.
'Wicked City' comes from a novel, and has two versions of real image, one Japanese and another from Hong Kong, and a manga. I loved this version, but I do not think I will watch the others; What I like is not the story, but the atmosphere.
FAKEANIMEGIRL
(Check out my profile for a link to my site containing more up-to-date reviews and bonus media!) Wicked City can't compete with Ninja Scroll and isn't even close to Vampire Hunter D, but it delivers on the qualities those other two did so well. Namely, despite all of these being best related as action-centric, they all excel in having a damp, dour atmosphere that makes all the events heavier than the light plots provide on their own. Wicked City takes place on an Earth that currently lives in peace with the hidden demon world. The time to renew the peace treaty draws near, and a humanand demon guard are assigned to work together to protect a mystic who will sign the treaty from demon extremists. The entire movie takes place over the night before the treaty should be signed, and constant drapes of cool blues and violent reds cover the scenery.
The ratio of action scenes here is roughly equal to that of the two previously mentioned movies, and those scenes are similarly kept enjoyable through the downtime where the setting can be soaked and the characters made likable enough. Taki is a fairly typical secret agent stereotype, a womanizing loner who keeps his true emotions hidden. Makie is an icy badass demon woman who looks great in a suit and slices enemies with razor-sharp, long fingernails. The two serious types unfortunately have to guard a lecherous old man who's more interested in seeing the womanly sights of Tokyo than stay hidden from his assailants. The most concerning aspect of Wicked City isn't its graphic violence so much as the amount of sex in the movie and the way its used. A dash of erotic sounds like something that could be made appropriate for a neo-noir horror combo, but it crosses well over the line into exploitation for its own indulgent sake. Imagery of sex contrasting with distant things to provide a subconscious connection where there might not be normally can stir feelings of passion and discomfort in a unique way, but it takes a deft and tactful hand to pull off. When Wicked City's sexually charged scenes target a female character it's always particularly malicious and disgraceful. When Taki's taken advantage of he overcomes sex, but when Makie is targeted she's made helpless and gratuitously, literally raped to no benefit of the movie's narrative. It's very disappointing, since I loved her strong character but had to watch it be dismantled for no adequate reason. Therein is the biggest issue with Wicked City, because when the sex is simply exploitative it's not only possibly offensive - it's a straight up waste of our time to watch.
Though that's not a problem I can easily put aside, I do find a lot of other qualities to enjoy here in spite of that. Again, the general mood of Wicked City is the main reason to watch it, and when that's capable of drawing you in the movie's pace becomes a smooth ride. It's an entertaining, easy watch. Mostly. I did enjoy the first half or so more than the second. It gets brisker as it goes along, appropriate as it approaches a climax, but too soon for my taste. I missed the amount of dialogue and downtime of the beginning of the movie. The animation quality's mostly just adequate. The style is excellent, but when computer-assisted animation techniques are used in Wicked City they stick out like a sore thumb. The character drawings are often blurry, and the rare use of CG is obviously out of place. Movement looks fine, but anything slow is particularly hampered by these problems. There's some occasional poor scene composition with bad perspective, but nothing too frequent or egregious. The soundtrack is a bleeting synthetic symphony, but isn't abrasive and gains points for when it sounds like Castlevania music. This adaptation of a novel, the first in a series of six, was Kawajiri's solo directorial debut and it shows a fitting immaturity. Nonetheless, it tells a fun, self-contained story in a memorable and engrossing way. Emphasis on "gross".
Cyclops_23
Start with the positives... + (Positive) - Highly creative use of body horror - Sexual symbolism and imagery that fits with theme - Dark and mysterious settings, use of shadows, flashing light - Intense and extreme action sequences - Visuals - Use of intrigue regarding plot - Powerful villain with rewarding boss fight- Cool morphing and enemy powers
- (Negative)
- Generic characters, lack of personality beyond fulfilling character types
- Some highly sexual scenes become a bit extreme for the film, though the sexual content does occasionally emphasize several themes evident in the film
- Not enough information on the 'dark' side
- Plot is in many ways far too typical of the genre
- Not enough of the ultimate villain or his minion
Overall, it's certainly a decent film and worth watching for the body horror and visuals alone (which create a really chilling aura).. but the rest is a little flat as there is, ultimately, far more style than substance throughout 'Wicked City', with the film severely lacking a truly memorable plot and inventive characters.
GarlandReese
The refined product of art and storytelling that Anime has become today makes one often forget it's humble beginnings. Wasn't too long ago that Anime was known for highly sexualized ultra-violent pieces. It was a nice break from the typical Disney stuff and the campy TV shows of the time. This wasn't your Dad's Anime either like "Speed Racer", this was hardcore stuff for those with an appetite for edgy. In that sense, Studio Madhouse's "Wicked City" can be seen as something of a cult classic, something that the inspired others to create. Todd McFarlane credits it with helping inspire him to create "Spawn". Withthat kind of an endorsement, "Wicked City" must be a macabre, gritty, gem right? Sadly, not so much...
Taking place in a world where the human world and the demon world coexist shakily and relying on an enforcement body to keep things in order, "Wicked City" certainly has a load of possibilities in store. What you get is a gory, sexually perverse, sci-fi/horror fest filled with some stunning (and at times nauseating) visuals that are indicative of what a lot of Anime was in the 1980s. Buncha blood n' boobs. In it's roughly 80 minute run time, we are treated to demons and combat and nudity all tied together by a weak and sometimes ridiculous plot.
Our main character, Taki, is a muscle bound super agent for the body that keeps things in order between the human world and demon world. After almost getting his junk eaten by a sultry spider-woman with a jagged-toothed, crotch-mouth, he's assigned to guard a VIP essential to the political spectrum and taking him to a treaty signing. This little old man of a VIP is a cliched perv and only serves to be annoying and do cringe-worthy things. Master Roshi ain't got nothin' on him. Assisting Taki is another super agent, Makie- a fair-skinned sex object, who serves as both eye candy and damsel in distress. I think she has more nude shots than speaking lines. But, she is hardly inessential to the plot, as she succeeds in (albeit rarely) aiding the story along.
A bunch of ugly demon people want to kill this VIP, which leads to some pretty decent fight scenes involving guns and fists and blue lightning. These are one of the few highlights of the film. There are many low-lights, including some mild hentaicle play, and a plot twist that tries to be clever but just comes off as silly and a little bit pretentious- but does lead to an excellent finale battle with a superb bad guy death. Alas, this cannot save "Wicked City" from it's fate... it is a mediocre at best, stereotypical 1980s, gore n' tits Anime flick. The only reason it's not pure trash is it does have some nice artwork going for it, the creatures are captivating- if nothing else- and the junk food factor is high. It is not boring.
The voice acting itself is not really worth discussing. I think for it's time it's remarkable for being totally unremarkable, when I was expecting just plain awful (be it Sub or Dub) and there is some very dated 80s style music that plays, too. It is certainly a creation of it's time. But, I am glad that things like this are the stuff of the past, relegated to the eyes of the morbidly curious. It's a film I'm not saying that I saw with any sense of pride or even volume in my voice. This is not a must-see, there are even better pieces out there if breasts and blood are your thing, but it is hardly without it's own, small, merits here and there. Budding chefs eat garbage fast food and then go on to create stunning dishes. "Wicked City" is the junk food that helped feed the hungry minds of the geniuses who now give us a better quality of Anime. And that's not nothing. 4/10. Check it out. Cheers!
OhKeil
DISGUSTING. Flat characters. Lost plot. Confusing ending. It started out interesting but whatever story it had became insignificant and dare I say non-existent. This movie is just a big monster hentai with a vagina spider and some tentacle thing. No exaggeration, every couple of minutes someone is being screwed with or without consent and that makes up at LEAST 70% of the movie. Lastly, the scene progression at the very end is just wrong, there’s no explanation as to how they got to where they were, how they got there, and why there were screwing when they got there despite everything that happened in the priorscene.
matthigh
One of the things I will never really understand is the melding of sex and grisly torture/horror. I mean, to each his own, I guess, but it's not for me. Having some naked girl writhing around and moaning while strange slimy misshapen demon creature is groping her is not my thing. And if it's not your thing, then this movie is also probably not for you. Smarmy, off-putting secret agent dude gets paired up with cool-as-cucumbers secret agent demon girl to protect an old perverted midget centenarian in a track suit the night before a huge, important peace conferencebetween Humanity and the Demons. Except there are all sorts of big nasties trying to prevent that from happening. Smarmy dude is somewhat incompetent, and demon lady's only special ability is that she can grow her fingernails really, really, really long and slash at people (a la Meg from Family Guy).
Lots of rapey-action and bloody violence and logic-defying twists galore! The actual plot and story take a back seat to it all -- it could be story about puppies and flowers and bunnies for all I care. All I remember is the visual onslaught as this movie tried to be as grisly-edgy as possible.
Well, at least the quality of the artwork and animation were pretty decent. Damning with faint praise, I suppose.
Amante_de_yuri
Bizarre, just... Bizarre I watched Wicked City (known as "Poderes Eróticos" in my country) when I was 14 years old (yeah, don’t judge me). I was addicted to old-school anime — Akira, Genocyber, that kind of stuff — and I remember that besides being amazed by the animation, I was also deeply traumatized. I couldn’t sleep for like three days. I couldn’t even take a shower with my eyes closed. There’s a certain scene involving a woman that… let’s just say she’s not what she seems. That moment seriously messed with my head in ways I can’t even explain. Then again, the whole anime is bizarre…and I guess that’s the point… I think ;-;
It’s one of the few straight anime I actually like. I still hold it in high regard to this day, but I admit that might just be nostalgia — I watched it at a time when I didn’t have much critical thinking.
What I really love is the aesthetic of old anime. That atmosphere, the art style, the vibe… it’s just beautiful. Way different from the sea of generic stuff we have nowadays. As a diehard yuri fan, it’s such a shame we barely have any yuri anime from that golden era. I would’ve devoured all of them if they existed.
Anyway, I give it a 7/10
BAYAMANACO
This film is truly great, ey yo the ideas in this film are just too kool, it gets weak near the end and thats why the story is around a 7 but trust me man, this is the real deal - the GUN oh my god i want one and the ladies haha oooh yes man i love them ladies and i can relate to this film, the speech is very good, very nice script.. much love for this one
