The Stray Cat Rock Films

[Takuma]

Received my Stray Cat Rock: Beat `71 (野良猫ロック 暴走集団'71’) t-shirt from Hardcore Chocolate and it's a beauty!
- https://core-choco.shop-pro.jp/?pid=172273810

[Jason C]

STRAY CAT ROCK WILD JUMBO is not my cup o' tea. For 50 minutes it's a gang of 4 dudes plus Meiko Kaji playing hippies just aimlessly dicking around. The final 30 minutes is a mediocre heist film with said hippies. I would only recommend this for those that love nihilistic endings. It's awfully grim when you consider how carefree the first hour is. But I didn't care enough about the film for the ending to have any power. I was just relieved it was over.

[Jason C]

I've not heard DELINQUENT GIRL BOSS mentioned much so I assume its considered one the weaker STRAY CAT ROCK titles which is good news for me because I enjoyed it immensely. Its a carbon copy of all the Toei gil gang films I enjoy (minus Miki and Reiko). While it lacks copious amounts of gratuitous nudity there is no shortage of sleaze, crazy 70's fashions and WTF violence. Knife fights, bloody shotgun blasts and a blow torch to the tits are some of the highlights. What distinguishes this film from other girl gang flicks is Akiko Wada's gigantic (5'9") biker lesbian character. She's a lot fun and spices up what is a typical "girl gang versus the yakuza" storyline. DELINQUENT GIRL BOSS isn't anything special. It's just more of the same Pinky Violence I love. I certainly wouldn't put it above most of the films in Toei's SUKEBAN series. But it's entertaining enough that I already feel like I got my money ($40) out of this set and I still have four films and some interviews to go.

[Takuma]

Hmmm... underwhelmed by sex hunter. Love the night clubs scenes. I'm a sucker for the period but its pretty plotless. Character motivations are close to non existent, the girls seem to act more like pre schoolers than toughs and, on top of it all, there's precious little sex hunting. May skip the box set unless this is considered one of the weak films in the series.

If you didn't care for Sex Hunter, I doubt you will care of the rest either. Sex Hunter (3) and Machine Animal (4) are probably the best, but all of Hasebe's entries (1, 3, 4) are similar in style. The ones by Fujita are a bit more realistic youth films with gang elements, as usual to director Fujita. While they're both good, neither one is among his best work.

Btw, Sex Hunter: Wet Target (1972), which was released on R1 by Synapse, is a very loose and very angry Roman Porno remake of Sex Hunter. Both were scripted by Atsushi Yamatoya. Wet Target features a male lead, a half blooded convict, who goes after drunken G.I.s who raped and killed his sister. I don't personally consider it as good as Sex Hunter, but it's certainly hellava lot more exploitative.
- trailer: http://nihoneigatrailer.com/Trailers...C-640x360.html

[Marshall Crist]

May skip the box set unless this is considered one of the weak films in the series.

If anything, it's probably the best.

[Dom D]

Hmmm... underwhelmed by sex hunter. Love the night clubs scenes. I'm a sucker for the period but its pretty plotless. Character motivations are close to non existent, the girls seem to act more like pre schoolers than toughs and, on top of it all, there's precious little sex hunting. May skip the box set unless this is considered one of the weak films in the series.

[Dom D]

So the limited edition British set is no longer so limited if they're just repackaging it for the US? I hate this sort of marketting with a passion. I know, I know... the box will no doubt be different.

It occurs to me I haven't seen any of these. I've owned Sex Hunter for years but have never watched it. Which is strange... If you own a film called Stray Cat Rock Sex Hunter why wouldn't you watch it? Particularly when it stars Kaji and you have a strange passion for the Scorpion series. Baffling.... I shall give it a spin this afternoon and then ponder my future purchases.

[Derrick King]

Heh. Just before the UK box sold out, Arrow hinted that they'd release this in the US, so I waited. (now watch them slap a $100 MSRP on this set just to make me regret not picking up the cheaper UK release)

[Marshall Crist]

I'm gonna not buy it because I already fucking bought it.

[Derrick King]

Arrow is releasing this in the US on July 14th. Still limited to 3000 copies. Seeing how quickly the UK version sold out, I think they should've upped it to 5000 or 6000 copies (actually they shouldn't limit it at all, but what the fuck am I gonna do, not buy it because I hate the limited edition model adopted by Arrow and the BFI? At least with a lot of the BFI stuff I can wait and pick up the nonlimited Criterion versions.)

[Sundance]

Delayed again.

[demented]

The Stray Cat Rock Films

Packaging problems, apparently.

[Marshall Crist]

I wonder what the frickin holdup is. Screeners went out a while ago.

[Ian Jane]

Pushed back another week.

Sigh.

[Jason C]

Looks like its getting pushed to Oct 6th.