There was a moment in the early 2000s when, here in the West, Tadanobu Asano was the new Japanese king of cool. From his portrayal of the crazed Ichi in Takashi Miike’s Ichi The Killer, or the prime antagonist Hattori Genosuke in Takeshi Kitano’s reimagining of the classic tale of Zatoichi in 2003, to the unforgettable Gen Sekiguchi film Survive Style 5+, as the beleaguered husband, everything the actor touched was lapped up by many of us craving our Nippon Cinema. He was in a position where he could do anything.
Whilst Electric Dragon 80000v doesn’t immediately jump out as a crowd-pleasing step on an upwardly mobile career path, what it does show is an actor working with a director who both like to take risks… and oh boy, was this ever a risk. Despite the potential risk, what ElectricDragon 80000v manages to produce is one of the most anarchic and hugely original 55 minutes one can have, but with an oh-so-familiar tale of electric-powered heroism.
I say familiar because, for all intense and purposes, it plays like a classic tokusatsu or super sentai type show, like Kamen Rider or Ultraman. Now imagine that type of show being put through a filter of Shinya Tsukamoto (in particular Tetsuo: The Iron Man) and a Punk Rock fever dream. Then again, for anyone familiar with Gakuryū (Sogo) Ishii’s work, this will come as no surprise.
Despite the comparisons to Tsukamoto-san, there is a much more playful nature to Electric Dragon 80000v. Where Tetsuo: The Iron Man uses its off-kilter aesthetic to disorientate the audience, Electric Dragon leans into its stylised quirkiness and is only matched by the committed performances of Tadanobu Asano, as the titular Electric Dragon, and his arch nemesis Thunderbolt Buddha (played perfectly opposite by Masatoshi Nagase).
A contradictory mix of Arthouse and Tokusatsu, Electric Dragon 80000v is a real assault on the senses, one that will leave you giddy with joy and desperate to seek out more of Gakuryū Ishii’s work.
As for the story, whilst there is one, it isn’t the type of film one would watch to take on a journey, because Electric Dragon 80000v is an experience for the senses, a visual treat wrapped in barbed wire, an assault on the senses, but one that should be welcomed and enjoyed. However, for what it’s worth, the story revolves around two characters, each with the power to conduct electricity. Becoming aware of each other leads to a final showdown on the rooftops of Tokyo city… but as has already been alluded to, this is secondary to a lot of the visual splendour, because whilst a month from now anyone will struggle to remember what happened, the image of that first sight of Thunderbolt Buddha or the chaotic anarchy of Electric Dragon playing his beloved guitar will be seared into your mind’s eye giving these visuals a life of their own.
Having said all this, saying that Third Window’s latest release is a hard sell is to do it a real disservice because, for all its visual vigour and prowess, it is far from a difficult watch. Sure, little if anything makes sense, but this is more down to the bizarro world in which these characters inhabit rather than the obtuse nature of any script or story beats. So whilst it does have an avant-garde identity, it is incredibly simplistic in its approach, making it as accessible as any Saturday cartoon.
Third Window has also pieced together some nice little extra features for this release as well, including presentations and Q&As from the film’s initial release. Whilst these do look dated (they are over 20 years old after all), they are still a treat to behold. A contradictory mix of Arthouse and Tokusatsu, Electric Dragon 80000v is a real assault on the senses, one that will leave you giddy with joy and desperate to seek out more of Gakuryū Ishii’s work.
Electric Dragon 80000v is out now on Third Window Films Blu-Ray
