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Operation Pussycat
[MVD Visual]
2007; color
Directed by Honda Ryuichi
Starring: Mizutani Kei, Eguchi Nao & Fukawa Yukari
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Part homage-to part inspired-by Russ Meyer's Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, Operation Pussycat doesn't waste any time in it's brief 43 minutes. Those familiar with the aforementioned classic will find much to like here on a number of levels. Those unfamiliar with FPKK!, however, are unlikely to pick up on the myriad of subtleties, and not-so-subtleties, that pop up in almost every scene. (Which is not to say that the few of you out there who haven't seen Meyer's classic won't find lots to like here - you will, but you won't be getting the full experience.) While none of the three girls who are the protagonists are as traditionally endowed as most Meyer girls (in fact, the combined cleavage of all three might add up to one Meyer gal if they each had miracle bras), they're sexy and dangerous in their own ways, more than making up for any physical differences from the original trio. All the elements are here: the three girls are go-go dancers, there's wheelchair-bound cantankerous old coot with a pile of money hidden somewhere in the house, a hulking 20-something boy who's not only mute but dumb as a fence post, and a remote location. The only character truly missing from the original is the older son, who's been replaced by a teenage slave girl. (She's a slave by choice to the old man; watch the flick for yourself if you want an explanation. The girl also embodies, to an extent, the girl who's kidnapped by the trio in FPKK.) Operation Pussycat ups the body count to seven (the original checks in with five), and the killings are more ruthless and vengeful here. There's a bit of a surprise at the very end that makes the title seem more than random but the biggest surprise of all is that, unlike every one of Meyer's film's, good most definitely does not ultimately triumph over evil. There is no moral or moralistic sentiment, all the loose ends are tied up and it just ends. While Operation Pussycat is well intended, and does a fairly decent job of going it on the cheap, it's not required viewing (or worthy of multiple repeat viewing) in the way almost any Meyer film is.
—the Kommandant
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