There is Earth, our familiar world, and then there is the Black World, a parallel dimension that very few are aware of. For centuries, a pact between the two worlds has been observed to maintain peace, but terms must be renegotiated to continue the relative harmony. Taki of the human world and Makie of the Black World, two agents of the elite organization known as the Black Guards, defenders of the balance between the two worlds, are charged with insuring the success of the treaty against all threats.The premise of Wicked City has been used in a number of other anime features, including Legend of the Overfiend: Earth is linked to a parallel world of demons, whose inhabitants can cross the barrier separating the planets. Dashing Taki Renzaburo, a secret agent assigned to handle invaders from the “Black World,” finds himself partnered with Makie, a gorgeous Black World woman. Their assignment: to protect Giuseppe Mayart, a bigwig coming to Tokyo to sign a 500-year peace treaty between the worlds. Mayart, who typifies the sniggering, diminutive lechers who often turn up in anime, hardly seems to warrant all this bother. Protecting him draws Taki and Makie into a series of exceedingly violent encounters with “radicals” from the Black World who oppose the treaty, including their shape-shifting, unkillable leader and a spider-woman with fanged genitalia. Blood and gore fly amid scenes of rape, torture, shootings, slashings, and exploding bodies. Yoshiaki Kawajiri directs skillfully, although the simian Mayart never blends into the realistic world of the film. Wicked City was a landmark work when it was released in 1987, and it retains a cult following. But many subsequent features–notably Mamoru Oshii’s darkly brilliant Ghost in the Shell–have eclipsed it. Not rated; suitable for ages 18 and up for nudity, sexual situations, profanity, rape, violence, grotesque imagery, and violence against women. –Charles Solomon

Buy “Wicked City” For Only $115.18

Related Blogs

• Related Blogs on City