Passionately directed fifth installment, ANGEL GUTS: RED VERTIGO (aka RED DIZZINESS),possesses the Takashi Ishii edge and is a solid exhibit of the talent for provocative imagery that this fine director also brought to GONIN and FREEZE ME.

Nami, a dreamy nurse (Mayako Katsuragi),is raped, cheated on by her photographer boyfriend, struck by a car and molested by the driver (Naoto Takenaka),a pathetic loser who is on the run from businessmen he ripped off. This unlikely duo discover a twisted shade of love.

It's the director who makes or breaks these films because the plots are merely serviceable. Though some critics consider the eroticizing of sexual violence in cinema questionable, I am not one of them. Sex and violence are strong cinematic staples and hold a power that only a courageous filmmaker can adequately convey.

In every scene, Ishii tries hard. He never retreats to bland, conventional coverage and extracts maximum erotic potential from the sexually charged scenarios. Ms. Katsuragi delivers a strong, believable performance as the unfortunate victim of male lust and opportunism. She conveys vulnerability and strength and suggests that she lives a life beyond the film's immediate framing.

An early scene, in which Nami's boyfriend takes erotic photographs of his mistress, which uses stark lighting and harsh sound effects, radiates an anarchic, raw sexuality.

This is solid, sensual, exciting cinema.

Yet another soft core sex flick from Japan. Yet again filled with perverse goings-on and shady characters. Yet again about a woman discovering and becoming comfortable with her sexuality. Yet again all men are sex-starved pigs and women the (often) unwilling objects of their desires. Then why the decent rating? Hard to say really.

A nurse is assaulted and nearly raped by some hoodlums at her hospital. She manages to escape and runs home for comfort, only to discover her husband cheating on her. She then flees her home only to have the bad luck of being hit by a car. And then, as if things weren't bad enough, she wakes up just in time to find herself being molested by the man that hit her. Talk about a bad day.

After the initial attack, the man keeps her captive and a classic case of Stolkhome syndrome kicks in, with her willingly giving into his advances. During this period viewers are treated to some graphic, if fogged-out, sex scenes that are a welcome contrast to the earlier scenes of sexual violence.

Despite myself, I did enjoy this film. I started for the kinky sex, but ended staying with it for the relationship between the characters, both of whom are victims of social ill; the woman that of physical, the man that of emotional. They just want a happy ending and by the end so do you. It is very much an urban fairy tale.

The film is in no way a technical marvel. It is a low-budget effort, but the makers use what they have well enough that it doesn't get in the way very often.

Despite being pretty slow in parts and fairly graphic sexually, there is a quality story being told here.

7/10

In the fifth entry in the Angel Guts films, Takashi Ishii, himself takes over the directorial reins to tell this story of Nami,a nurse who after getting almost raped by two patients and returning home only to find her photographer boyfriend cheating on her with another woman (eagle eyed viewers will recognize her as Nami from the forth film, "Red Porno"),has enough. Running into the street in a frenzied state, she gets hit by a car. While she's knocked out the helpful man molests her, putting the running tally to 3.. At first she's angry at him, but then they begin to fall in love. While this was better then the forth and worst of the series, it was still nowhere near the first three. Which makes me strongly feel that Angel Guts would have been a fondly remembered trilogy, if only they left it at that.

My Grade: C

DVD Extras: Commentary by Jasper Sharp; Bio/Filmographies; a 32 and a half minute interview with Takashi Ishii; Original Sleeve art; and Trailers for this and 4 other Angel Guts Films (High School Co Ed, Red Classroom, Nami, & Red Porno) all available in Artsmagik's Box-set, but for some reason the 6th film "Angel Guts: Red Flash" is not in the set