Ninja Vixens: Devilish Angels (Takeuchi Mineko 2006)

Genre: Sexy Ninja fights Boobs and Beasts for JUSTICE!

review in one breath

After defecting from her clan of ninja assassins, curvaceous Anju now wanders the back roads killing bad guys as a rogue bounty hunter. But hot on her (hot) tail is Orchid, her buxom rival and former fellow assassin, with the intent of making Anju pay for her insubordination. To survive and avenge her past, Anju will need every trick and wile hidden up her cleavage!

intro

This is the third in a series of TEN “Ninja Vixen” films. Though unrelated in narrative, each of these ten cast various soft core starlettes, dress them in flamboyant ninja pajamas or kimonos, and then proceed to remove said clothing in a variety of situations and circumstances.

The entire VIXEN collection consists of the following TEN films:

– Ninja Vixens: Flame of Seduction
– Ninja Vixens: Crimson Blades
– Ninja Vixens: Devilish Angels
– Ninja Vixens: Vixen Dropouts
– Ninja Vixens: Web of Passion
– Ninja Vixens: Forbidden Paradise
– Bounty Hunter Vixens: Treasure of Lust
– Bounty Hunter Vixens: Carnal Enchantment
– Ninja Vixens: Demonic Sacrifices
– Ninja Vixens: Virgin Nightmares

All of these tales are “period pieces”, meaning they are set in something akin to the Tokugawa era, when samurai, ninja and magical mayhem still roamed the land. And to varying degrees, the settings are sufficiently elaborate — Not enough to make them true “jidaigeki”, but enough to provide a fun if albeit shallow samurai/ninja foray.

The budget and sets of “Devilish Angels” are pretty minimal. And relative to the others in the series I have seen thus far, it is also fairly sparse of bOObies. With the exception of a nipple slip here and there, the only breast baring done is by actress Chika Kawamura playing the buxom antagonist Orchid. The main ninjaette Anju is played by Miki Shigeyasu and her pouty-faced sidekick is played by Minako Tsuge.

Director Mineko Takeuchi is female which may account for the subdued bOObage and the narrative’s emphasis on female/sisterly camaraderie. Takeuchi has worked on a couple earlier “Kunoichi Ninpoden” films in the role of writer/screenplay for male directors and this film likely intends a more feminine approach to the genre.

And speaking of genre, the “Ninja Vixen” series is clearly marketed as “sexy” and touts highly the cuteness and/or voluptuousness of its starlettes. (The original, now defunct distributor’s site – neon-g.com — listed all the female casts’ bust and hip measurements alongside their filmographies.) But while these films definitely display bOObs and a lot of sexual innuendo, they do not merit the category of “Pink/pinku” film. (At least that’s my opinion.) Nor would I consider these significantly “erotic” in a strict sense. They belong more in the “late night comedy” category alongside other cheesy, often juvenile tales with a few breasts thrown in for the more otaku crowd.

Verdict

This is clearly a “Ninja Vixen” film, but it is significantly more subdued than its counterparts. I’ll chalk that up to fact that Miss Takeuchi is directing. The storyline is decent and it was an easy film to watch — no thought required. The emphasis here is much more about sisterly friendship and redemption than it is about bOObs and magic swords. I guess that could be viewed as a good thing by some people. I tend to prefer the latter though. This film is available separately or as part of the complete 10 DVD set of Ninja Vixen films. Either way, its easy to get your hands on a copy if you want to check it out.

Cultural Interest
0/5

Not much in the way of cultural or historical reference here.

Violence
1/5

The violence is fairly subdued, apart from occasional magic mayhem.

Sex
1/5

You can count on one hand the number of nipples appearing on this film. And talking penises cannot be counted for credit the “sex” category.

Strangeness
2/5

One green skull for the melting man and one for the talking penis. The Blue BooB almost earned a third skull, but not quite.