The opening of the film, in which each actor/character is introduced, is one of the most original and exciting I've ever seen. It really gives you a hint of what you're in for. Most movies just have one or two unusual characters, but there are a ton of them in Shark Skin Man. The yakuza thugs are unlike any you've seen before; they're decked out in what the director calls "hyper fashion gear," which basically means that they dress like characters from a comic book. Just a few of them: a bleached blonde guy who wears a white leather jumpsuit and sunglasses, another guy who wears a hood that descends into a cape, and the leader, who almost looks like Darth Vader with his leather outfit. Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl themselves get a make-over later in the film, Samehada picking up the shark skin jacket that gives him his moniker, and Toshiko dropping the uniform and glasses she's worn throughout the movie, and decking herself out as what appears to be a prostitute. She's damn sexy, too.

Probably the biggest scene-stealer in the flick is Yamada, a uni-browed, kooky assassin hired by Peach Hip Girl's uncle to kill Samehada and bring back Toshiko. This guy is one piece of work. Dangerous, crazy, and loveable in a goofy sort of way, he's definitely one of the many highlights in the movie. Peach Hip Girl as well is an interesting character, though she only has a few lines in the whole piece. So is Samehada's old friend, Sawada, who's still a member of the yakuza, and is trying to find Samehada with the rest of them. Shark Skin himself is the rule-breaking bad-ass we all wish we could be.

Plot wise, you can see that this movie is a lift on Tarantino's "True Romance," much as Miike's later film "City of Lost Souls" was. However, Shark Skin Man is everything the Miike film wanted to be. It's a live-action anime (matter of fact, the movie is based on a manga, which unfortunately hasn't been translated into English) with great characters, moving moments, and some great dialog exchanges. Every character in the movie has his or her own agenda, as well as hobbies, and they feel free to talk about them, no matter what's currently going on with the plot. And unlike "City of Lost Souls," Shark Skin Man isn't a straight-up remake of "True Romance," it just takes the basic set-up (guy and gal on the run from gangsters) and goes in a different direction.

A criticism that's often leveled at Tarantino is that he "steals" elements from Hong Kong/Asian cinema. I don't think what he does is outright theft, as the same thing's done by countless other artists, taking something established and putting their own spin on it. In Tarantino's case, I find his versions superior to the original material; i.e., I think "Reservoir Dogs" is superior to "City on Fire." In other words, Tarantino generally improves on the source material. But in the case of Shark Skin Man & Peach Hip Girl, this has been done to him; SSM&PHG is equal to all of Tarantino's films.

There aren't as many action scenes as I would've liked, but there's still an unrelenting pace to the film. Kind of like Guy Ritchie's movies, i.e. "Snatch": though there aren't many shoot-outs or other action setpieces in the film, it still carries more energy than your average Schwarzenegger flick. Shark Skin Man is the same. There are several shoot-outs, though, and the final one, in which Yamada tries to spring a trap on the yakuza thugs, is the best of them all. Even though I'm an action junkie, I have to say it isn't the action that carries SSM&PHG, anyway. Like Tarantino and Ritchie's films, it's the vibrant characters, humorous dialog, and memorable situations that make the movie so enjoyable.

Currently there are 2 DVDs available, both of them Region 2 discs. There's a German release, which seems to be the one HKFlix has in stock, and a superior Japanese Special Edition release. This is the one with the flames and "SM" on the cover. This is the version I have, and it comes with loads of supplemental material (all in Japanese, but still interesting), as well as great interactive menus.

In short, if you are a fan of Hong Kong action movies, yakuza flicks, subversive cinema, comic-book style costumes, or Guy Ritchie or Quentin Tarantino's films, then you must buy, beg, or steal a copy.

I saw S.S. Man & P.H. Girl at the Hawaii International Film Festival in Nov. 98, and it took my breath away. This flick is the funniest, coolest, most invigorating piece of eye candy I've ever seen. This debut film from Ishii (a well known director of Japanese commercials) has got all the right moves, and then some. Based on a Japanese Manga (comic book), it's basically a road movie about a young woman on the run from her domineering and perverted uncle who meets up with a young man on the run from the gang of stylish gangsters he has stolen from. The gangsters are the funniest, most outrageous, coolest bunch of baddies I've ever seen. Their dialogue is hilarious, their costumes are incredible, and they're all so enjoyable to watch that it's always sad when one gets rubbed out. The uncle also sends someone after the pair, a diminutive and frantic little guy who would totally steal the show in any other movie than this one. Here, he just adds to the mix, without drawing your attention away from any of the other colorful characters.

I can't really describe how much I enjoyed this movie, but I remember that at the end of it, my face hurt from smiling so much. I think I was grinning during the entire film... If you're a fan of the films of Luc Besson, Tarantino, Boyle, et al. (the Trainspotting crew), the Coens, John Woo, Ringo Lam, and Tsui Hark, then you have GOT to see this movie. I don't know when (or if) it will actually be released in the states or the UK, but if and when it comes, you MUST see it. The funny thing about the movie is that it's so extremely extreme that you know it's a parody of the work of some of the above directors, but the damn thing is so much fun that it actually works as a "cool heist/road movie," and not just a parody of one. In fact, I thought it worked so well that it is now my favorite film of this genre. Tarantino was in the audience when I saw this movie, and when Ishii answered questions at the end of the film, and someone asked him who influenced him, he grinned at QT, and said (through his translator) something like "I think you know the answer to that." The thing is, I think (and hope) QT was the one learning something that night. To paraphrase Vader: "Once I was the learner, now I am the Master!" I guess the lesson here is that there's no such thing as too derivative. Hell, QT himself is all about ripping off old movies he liked, and improving on them. Ishii just did it to him... Anyway, this was the best of the fest by far, and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of it. Keep your eyes peeled movie fans; don't let this one get away.