With the growing popularity of idol performers in Japan, pairing together various groups into a singular movie is a tactic that hasn't really been tackled before now. Bringing together members of the groups SUPER ☆ GiRLS and SOLIDEMO, this action/horror hybrid from director Yuki Kumagai is now screening at Japan Film Fest Hamburg.
Tokyo Living Dead Idol is screening at Japan Film Fest Hamburg
Following a disastrous performance, idol-group Tokyo 27-ku, Miku Kamiya, (Rina Asakawa) Moe, (Yume Abe) and Yuririn (Ozawa Luna) find themselves under the threat of turning into a zombie after Miku is bitten. Knowing she has a deadline to hold out until the transformation takes hold, she seeks out detective Inuda (Shogen) to help track down a potential cure for the virus. However, the two run into a stumbling block when they realize the developer of the virus, Kumozawa (Kôichi Takamatsu) is safeguarding the potential cure for a political coup to take over the country by forcing more zombies onto the population. When a zombie hunter named Kisaragi (Hoshi Mamoru) gets wind of their plight, her inner fangirl for the group causes her to join them in storming the corporate building holding the ingredients of the cure and try to help them accomplish their mission.
Overall, there's a lot to like with ‘Living Dead Idol.' One of the stronger features here is a rather offbeat and goofy storyline from director Kumagi that offers up some interesting twists and enhancements to a typical zombie film. Rather than provide the impetus for the launch of a zombie virus around the city, the narrative instead explores the futility of living life on borrowed time. By being bitten at the very beginning and aware of the guidelines for turning into a zombie, Miku goes from a self-centered, selfish individual who thinks the whole world owes her for her career as a teen idol, to becoming aware of what her condition will ultimately bring. Not only will she leave behind Moe and Yuririn who are still human, but the other relationships she's damaged by her attitude in the past will be changed once the deadline hits. This causes a fine change of character that carries the majority of the film into the race to uncover the conspiracy holding back a cure for the zombie virus.
Also rather enjoyable is the incredibly fun and over-the-top finale. Having been built up a wholly intriguing storyline throughout the beginning of the movie, featuring the need to locate and rescue the one individual that can provide a cure while trying to avoid the zombie hunters, the final half turns into a wholly respectable series of confrontations with the zombies. After infiltrating the compound, the series of zombies swarming through the hallways after them lead to several big battles. The group takes on the main swarm and manage to hold off the creatures rather nicely before turning to individual combat tactics. Engaging solo in a spirited sword-fight and then a big gun-battle with selected zombies provides plenty of fun as the gory action and frenzied movements really bring out the kind of crazy features these genre films typically provide. Complete with all the fine bloodshed and crazy stunts from action director Taiju Nemoto that usually occur in these types of genre efforts, this section really scores nicely with a lot to like about it.
Still, ‘Living Dead Idol' does have a few problems. The main issue to be had here is the troublesome mid-section that changes up the pacing considerably. Focusing on Miku and Inuda going through the investigation into the cause of the zombie outbreak and the history of its controversial cure, dominate a section that ends up slowing down the film. Going through old articles and hearsay about what happened years ago or doing in-person questioning about the incidents really aren't that interesting, and while these scenes help to flesh out Miku's redemption storyline, they still drop the pacing down. As well, that also manages the strange facet of keeping the action down to really brief spurts until the finale so that the zombies barely arrive in the story. The few battles are short and really unimpressive as action pieces, and with the bland pacing, there's not a whole lot of action anyway. As well as the usually typical low-budget quality CGI work for the blood splatter and gore, these here are the main issues present.
With some enjoyable elements about it but some big problems with the pacing and lack of zombie action, ‘Living Dead Idol' emerges as a solid enough take on the Japanese zombie film. Give this a shot if you're into this type of Japanese effort or fans of the idol groups present, while those unwilling to go into the craziness present in this kind of film should heed caution.
