Rating: **
Review Date: 2/10/19
Cast: Reiko Oshida, Yumiko Katayama, Junzaburo Ban
The fourth and final film in the "Delinquent Girl Boss" series is simply another retelling of the first three films, featuring many of the same actors and characters. Once again, a short-haired and rebellious Rika Kageyama (Reiko Oshida) raises hell at reform school, and upon getting out she tries to find a job in Shinjuku and a place to stay. The father of one of her classmates (Junzaburo Ban) offers Rika a job as a grease monkey at his garage and he becomes the father figure that she has always yearned for. Unfortunately, the Yakuza want the old man's land, and they use his estranged daughter and her worthless boyfriend to extort him. Another of Rika's friends is pregnant with a disgraced Yakuza's child and makes a living as a nude model at an art studio, while two more friends work as hostesses at the sleazy Ginza Girl Cabaret. As you would expect, these women can only put up with so much heartbreak, betrayal, and abuse before they decide to strike back. Wearing identical red trench coats, the five girls storm the villain's office and hack the bad guys to death with swords before getting hauled away by the police.
It's a tedious and disappointing film, mostly because the charming Reiko Oshida has so little to do. She's essentially just a supporting character in everyone else's drama, which is a bit strange since the series is supposed to revolve around her. The story retains the goofy humor from the original, but the sex and nudity are toned down a bit. The climax offers the film's only action piece, and while it starts out promising, the clumsy and bloodless battle is a letdown and lacks any visceral or emotional impact. The only shot worth noting is when Rika takes down the final boss and he bleeds out on a see-through floor. Reiko Oshida continues to be disarmingly adorable, and while she's the film's main draw, Junzaburo Ban steals the spotlight with his refined and heartfelt performance as Midori's dignified and embattled father. Reiko's wardrobe is much more conservative this time around and she favors short-shorts over panty-flashing mini-skirts. The marketing for the film is very deceptive, as the poster doesn't represent the film at all, and nearly all of the footage in the trailer isn't in the final movie.