Demon City Shinjuku (1988)

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

Yoshiaki Kawajiri has some fun, if questionable, popcorn flicks under his name. Demon City Shinjuku (where did the name Hell City Shinjuku, US come from?) is not one of them. DCS is everything bad about the violent anime of the era, and nothing good. Worst of all, it has little to laugh at, or guilty-pleasure action.The hero is the stock, young, masculine, Japanese every-man. The villain is evil with no character behind him. The love interest is simply there, and lacks any real reason for affection. Their pasts are empty, their presents are uninteresting, and their futures lack change. There isn't even wasted effort here. Its just as pandering as the shallow moe anime of today, only for a different audience of a different time.The animation and action scenes are alright, but without any likable context to ground them, I wasn't amused. You can see this kind of stuff in many other crappy forgotten demon anime. The one saving grace is a fight with a seductive demoness on a pool table. It was the stylized, over-the-top bad I like from Kawajiri. But its a lone, short scene. You've also got a final battle that's easily won through deus ex machina, like they couldn't come up or afford an actual fight. That ruins the film even for the most tolerant retro-nerd side of me.There are hundreds of anime out there. And there are dozens that are more exciting, campy, or embarrassing. While I can't say I hate DCS, there isn't a good reason to see it.

The Main Reason Being That This Is A Low Budget, Direct To DVD Movie From The Early Days Of Kawajiri When His Peak Was Wicked City, Its Hard Enough Finding "Ninja Scroll" In Australia.Now I've Stopped That Onto What I Thought, I Saw The English Dub, The Plot Overall Was Good But DON'T See The English Dub, A Kid Has A Mexican Accent In That Dub Which Ruined My Suspension Of Disbelief That This Could Happen To Tokyo(I Suspend My Disbelief As Far As A Movie Is Willing To Bend And This Is Anime For God Sakes, You Could Suspend Your Disbelief That A Whole 8 Minute Fight Occurs Entirely In Mid Air.) The Original Voices Were SO MUCH BETTER! I Thought That This Was One Of Kawajiri's Lesser Works, He Has Done Better With Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust, Wicked City, Highlander: Search For Vengeance & Ninja Scroll. However I Thought It Had A Good Story Considering The Runtime Of 77 Minutes.Overall If You Want Kawajiri In The Masters Chair Then Watch "Wicked City" Followed By "Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust" However If You Want A Film To Keep You Entertained About A Prodigal Son Taking Down A Demon World In 77 Minutes Then Go Ahead. I Liked It.

$20.... I spent $20 on this movie. I had never seen this movie before I bought it. There was no where to rent it in town. I saw a commerical on TV for the best of Japanese anime. I like stories about demons, I like anime. Wow this movie should rock! But it doesn't! I hate this movie! It's funny, that's all it is. The characters swear on an almost constant basis, that's the humor of this movie. The main characters barley evolve. The ending sucks. The ending really sucks. I would've been happier with a guy dancing around in a dinosaur outfit than the ending they put in this piece of crap. There is almost no violence. Almost none. I consider something violent when there's blood and lots of it. This should've been put on Nick Jr as a joke. Even the preschoolers could've created something more interesting than this. So why don't I give it one point? Well that's easy, and there's two reasons for that: 1 point for the swearing. 1 point for the wooden sword. Unless you're in the mood for something to complain about don't watch this anticipating anything. The characters are dull with the exception of the colorful language, the action is tolerable but still not very good, and the ending is the most disgraceful thing since boy bands. Heed my warning: Avoid.

This is one of my favorite anime movies I have seen. It is very fast paced with really cool action scenes, likable characters dubbed good, and good villains as well. Only one dude can save the world from the demons...his father tried to previously, but failed. This is shown right at the beginning and sets the tone for the rest of this flick. Let's just say that there aren't many boring parts to speak of. My favorite character had to be Mephisto. You wonder if he is on the side of good, or perhaps evil. Through it all the dude fights his way through the demons till he has the final confrontation with the man responsible for his dad's death. The final conflict is one for the ages and the ending to this one won't leave you saying "what just happened?".