A strange disease affects 15 - 17 year old girls worldwide. It plunges them into a state of euphoria, and then kills them, only for them to be reborn as zombies. They get referred to as "Stacies", and in Japan a series of "Stacies laws" are put into effect. It is determined that the best method of dispatching a Stacy is to chop them up into exactly 165 pieces.
A few separate stories are related, including that of Shibukawa (Toshinori Omi) making a connection with young Eiko (Natsuki Kato), a young man named Arita who knows he must do right by a new acquaintance named Momo, and the wild experiments of a mad scientist, played by Yasutaka Tsutsui, who resembles a Japanese Charles Bronson.
There may not be a particularly meaty (pardon the expression) story here for some viewers, but for yours truly, it sufficed for 81 minutes. What is clear is what a big horror fan director Naoyuki Tomomatsu is. He proudly wears his influences right on his sleeve, as the script references George A. Romero and his zombie filmography, Bruce Campbell and his legendary character of Ash, and even Drew Barrymore. The film is fortunately spectacularly gory, and often quite amusing. At its best, it alternates between satirical elements, sweet & touching moments, some really good laughs, and straightforward bloody zombie mayhem. The many perky teenage girls, most of them clad in school uniforms, really throw themselves into their zombie roles.
"Stacy" is not really a film that seeks to reinvent this type of horror tale (the ultimate motivation behind the killing sprees notwithstanding), but clearly the cast and filmmaker had fun making this, and the viewer will likely have a good time, too.
Seven out of 10.
A few separate stories are related, including that of Shibukawa (Toshinori Omi) making a connection with young Eiko (Natsuki Kato), a young man named Arita who knows he must do right by a new acquaintance named Momo, and the wild experiments of a mad scientist, played by Yasutaka Tsutsui, who resembles a Japanese Charles Bronson.
There may not be a particularly meaty (pardon the expression) story here for some viewers, but for yours truly, it sufficed for 81 minutes. What is clear is what a big horror fan director Naoyuki Tomomatsu is. He proudly wears his influences right on his sleeve, as the script references George A. Romero and his zombie filmography, Bruce Campbell and his legendary character of Ash, and even Drew Barrymore. The film is fortunately spectacularly gory, and often quite amusing. At its best, it alternates between satirical elements, sweet & touching moments, some really good laughs, and straightforward bloody zombie mayhem. The many perky teenage girls, most of them clad in school uniforms, really throw themselves into their zombie roles.
"Stacy" is not really a film that seeks to reinvent this type of horror tale (the ultimate motivation behind the killing sprees notwithstanding), but clearly the cast and filmmaker had fun making this, and the viewer will likely have a good time, too.
Seven out of 10.