009-1: The End of the Beginning

2013 "She was forced to become the perfect killing machine with a heart of steel."
4.6| 1h22m| NC-17| en
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In a universe where the Cold War never ended and growing conflicts result in the rapid advancement of technological warfare, the cyborg spy Mylene Hoffman of the 00 Organization battles the agents of the Eastern block in a game of high tech espionage.

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Reviews

GurlyIamBeach Instant Favorite.
CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.
InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
reallytorkedoff-87464 I'm aware there is a whole genre that this movie falls into (pink or pink violence), but that is not enough to redeem it. I am amazed that it was not more evident that this movie falls into this category. IMDB could have been more clear about this fact.Hopefully my review will make it more apparent.Unless you're really into this sort of stuff (I'm not), this movie will be a waste of your time. Production values are middling to low and the plot is pretty thin. It's mostly sex, nudity and gunfire.Enjoy!
ulrichburke I don't do many reviews, but I had to put the other two guys here to rights. First of all, it's a totally feminist film All the main parts - good and bad - are women with really well-developed characters. You see, feel and sympathise with all the suffering that men have put them through, turning them into cyborgs, even into artificial zombies, forcing them to fight and kill against their will. The men in the movie are stereotyped cyphers, the characters you feel and root for are all women. It may be called sci-fi, but I saw many ways men treat women this badly in real life and cheered as the men got all they deserved - MAYBE SLIGHT SPOILER COMING UP...!! - all the bloodiest kills were on men and I thought every one deserved all he got! There's also a LOT of feminine sensuality throughout the movie but it's VERY tastefully handled, hardly any flesh, all implied and the better for that. The storyline's superb in a Manga way - each mission leaves the character learning more about herself until she has the power to regain control of her own life from the exploitation of Men - how historically accurate is THAT! If you're up for a full-on, feminist action flick where you'll cheer as every man gets what he deserves, this is the best movie you'll see in ages. I really think women will identify with the heroine, long, as I did, to kill the men who warped and twisted the women she meets along the way - and cheer as those men meet their bloody but beautifully done demises. Even - MAYBE ANOTHER SLIGHT SPOILER....!! - the 'baddie' woman is only the way she is because of what men did to her, I found myself sympathising with her, too.It's got depth, it's got great character development (in the women, the men are intentional stereotypes) it's got a TON of Manga action, it's been made with huge heart and feeling for its source material, it hides its lack of budget with great stylishness and verve. If you love Manga, you'll feel you're an actual part of its world. If you're a woman, please watch it, you'll feel rejuvenated, like you've got revenge on every idiot male who's ever crossed your path. And Men - if you come across a lady who's seen this flick - beware!! Films like this deserve more faith from their backers and a far wider cinema audience. Eight out of ten stars, easy. Chris.
Derek Childs (totalovrdose) ...There is no real emotional connection to the characters, or their development, resulting in very two dimensional individuals, the story itself, which fails to substantially bear fruit, being conceived in a similar vein.Having never viewed the Manga or Anime this feature is based upon, perhaps I was at a disadvantage, as I did not expect the opening of the film to encompass sex and nudity. The film exhibits an avid concentration on the legs and chests belonging to the female characters, and despite the lead never revealing her underlying flesh, which reflects the principles the feature is able to support, much of the sexual content contradicts this particular aspect through the severe limitation exhibited upon morals in general - even incest being a theme incorporated into the script.Almost all of the female characters dress in leather outfits that are absolutely stunning, revealing the physicality of the gorgeous women wearing them. There's one particular scene involving two women with magnificent external features, one of whom is pinned to a table, the other on top, her tongue dancing across the body of the woman who's tied down, saliva left in its wake. This, much like a scene where women are dressed in alluring maid outfits, which is a step up from other moments involving women whose attire is even more revealing, is obviously aimed towards a male audience, who will, in all likelihood, potentially enjoy the aforementioned scene, as it is easily one of the film's most memorable moments. Unfortunately, it seems the creators put too much thought into the tantalizing visuals and innuendo, and not enough elsewhere, which is where the attention was most required. Safe to say, feminists need not apply to watch this movie, with over 80% of the women in the feature been relegated to unnecessary sexist stereotypes.On the subject of the film's other prominent feature, the sheer mass of violence steadily increases over the course of the film, until red becomes the main color spilling across the screen. The fight scenes, although occasionally wonderfully executed, despite the obvious low budget, sometimes become tiresomely long-winded, even with the action oriented soundtrack which efficaciously works accompanying many of the scenes. Most of these battles take place in condemned locations that lack much physical appeal, whereas limited time is spent in the feature's more luxurious settings.Due to the focus on sexually related ideas, and buckets of blood and gore, the story exhibits minimal impact upon the viewer. In the future, the world is divided into two blocks: east and west. Mylene, otherwise known as 009-1 (Mayuko Iwasa), is a brilliant spy for the Western Block, outfitted with an arsenal of weaponry (including machine-guns in her breasts, that, although imaginative, have recently been shown elsewhere). In battle, she is outmatched, frequently been called upon to undergo dangerous operations. When eliminating a human trafficking operation, she happens upon Chris (Minehiro Kinomoto), whose very existence begins to change her life, causing her to feel a connective tug dragging her continuously towards him. Her employer, led by 020 (Naoto Takenaka) however, will not allow her to experience a normal life so easily. Upon been thrust into an operation to save a valued scientist, Dr. Klein (Aya Sugimoto), who has a direct connection to her past, Mylene finds herself in the center of a fight unlike any she has ever encountered. Who can she trust? What can she do? And can she figure it all out in time? A collection of cliché ideas, that are not nearly as predictable as they are flattening to the overall story, alongside an anti-climatic conclusion, that raises more questions than it deems to answer, while teasing the possibility of a sequel, inhibit much of the tension and suspense the film attempts to construct. If you, dear viewer, want to see an assortment of unfathomably beautiful women in sexy, sexy outfits, then please, look no further. If you want a film that contains a decent storyline, maybe you ought to look elsewhere...
MartinHafer "009-1" is a horrifically violent but very stylish film. Blood and gore is rampant and can very off-putting. So, if you don't like all the violence, then it's certainly NOT a film for you. I am just warning you about this up front, as the film is a 9.5 on a scale of 1 to 10 for violence! Because of this, and a bit of nudity and sexuality, it's probably NOT a good film to watch with your kids, your mother or Father O'Reilly!The film is based on an older manga series from Japan. Back from 1967- 1970 the series ran in serial form and it made a brief re-appearance in 1974. Then, much more recently, an anime version was made. How close they are to this live-action film, I have no idea.The film begins with a prologue telling the audience that the film is set in some dystopic future--where evil and greed are rampant and the poor are treated pretty much like animals. The opening scene in the night club pretty much sets the stage for the violence you'll see, as a complete scum of a guy kills for no reason. And, after brutally murdering someone, he turns his lustful eyes to a gorgeous woman--a woman who just happens to be 009-1. However, it turns out that 009-1 is a secret agent--a cybernetic one! She has little in the way of past memories and is full of amazing gadgets, as she was created to serve her 'side' in some seemingly meaningless battle between rival countries. In addition to being able to regenerate, dodge bullets, seduce men and kill with ease, this robotic lady also has boobs which are, well, booby- trapped! You'll just have to see the film to understand what I mean. But of course, she kills this scum-bag--as well as most everyone in his entourage. Such goings on are pretty much the ENTIRE film--with 009-1 going from one boss battle after another and killing. However, during the course of 009-1's violent missions, she starts to remember more and more bits of who she might have been before she was made into some sort of killing machine reminding me of the excellent sci-fi book by Joe Haldeman, "All My Sins Remembered"). Additionally, she begins to show some independence--such as choosing in some cases NOT to kill as she seems to be developing some compassion. I really liked this aspect of the film--a blurring between the line of what it is to be a machine and what it is to be emotionally human (sort of like a rated-R version of "Wall-E"!).Unfortunately, as the film progresses, I got a very strong feeling that there were two big problems with the film. First, while the ideas in "009-1" are really neat, there simply are too many pieces of plot all shoved into the film. This movie is definitely a case where more is less--the more plot points they cram into the movie, the more you get overwhelmed. It feels as if they put too much of the old series into one film instead of letting it unfold like a serial. A mini-series or follow-up films would have probably worked better. It just overwhelms you with all the plot twists and exposition. Overwhelming is also what I felt about the violence. I will admit that I am not a huge fan of violence unless it is handled well (such as in the wonderful Gina Carano films). Here, you get one killing after another after another and after a while I just found it a bit boring. Had the film progressed slower and focused much more on a central plot, the more it would have entertained. As it is, it is a very unique film but one I cannot wholeheartedly recommend unless you want mindless violence--much like if you are playing a video game. An interesting idea but one that leaves you feeling a bit overwhelmed.I'd love to hear from you anime and manga fans about this one. Is the original story THIS complicated and violent? Did it leave you feeling exhausted and a bit overwhelmed? And, are the anime, manga and film similar or did the filmmakers take some serious diversions from the old story?