Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Protraph Lack of good storyline.

Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Leofwine_draca R100 is an exceptionally weird movie, but then I wouldn't expect anything else from Japanese cult cinema (and, truth be told, I'd be disappointed if I got otherwise!). The story sees a middle-aged businessman visiting a dominatrix bureau, where he signs a contract that will see him randomly beaten and abused by a succession of beautiful women over the course of a year.The premise is as preposterous and nonsensical as it sounds, and yet it's mighty funny at the same time. Watching this poor guy walking down the street before being half kicked to death by a leather-clad lady is certainly memorable, and if the narrative seems repetitive then that's part of the intent. Still, the stakes are raised as the story progresses, leading to a half-mad climax full of cheesy action and attacks from a giant westerner. Warning: a strong stomach is needed for the lengthy spitting sequence.

Maz Murdoch (asda-man) I've seen some bizarre films in my time, but the Japanese meta-comedy, R100 has to be one of the most bizarre. It opens with a young lady kicking the hell out of a man for no apparent reason in a restaurant. She leaves, but for some reason he goes after her and she turns around to beat him up some more and throws him down stairs. She then removes her clothes to reveal a highly skimpy leather fetish outfit underneath whilst the man looks up and his face disturbingly distorts into a manic grin with some atrocious Moviemaker ripple effects. That's when you realise that this film is going to be weird. However, it only gets weirder!In a plot similar to David Fincher's The Game, R100 centres on the idea of a family man joining a club which promises euphoric pleasure by hiring attractive young women to beat the crap out of you at any random moment. The catch is that membership lasts a year and you can't cancel. You also can't touch or hurt any of the girls. That's the intriguing premise of this delightfully wacky film. Anyone expecting a clear narrative can leave now. The less you know the better, I knew virtually nothing about this film and came out feeling highly amused and bemused in equal measure.Not everything in R100 does work. I found it a tad too sentimental at times with the relationship between the dad and son being rubbed in our faces. The whole wife in a coma thing was also over-played to get a heart-warming reaction from the audience. A lot of things in the first hour also start to feel a little repetitive with the same jokes being played again and again. However, things take an interesting turn when events turn darker by involving the innocent family. I also really liked the postmodern aspect by showing that this is just a film directed by a 100 year-old man who says that no one will understand the film unless they're 100, hence the film's title!Things turn seriously koo-koo in the last 30 minutes and the film completely rips up the film school rulebook in an infectiously anarchic manner. All kinds of loopy ideas are thrown at the screen and we're left with a big puddle-like mess on the floor, however it's a mess that's hard to shake out your head. I'm not going to forget the dominatrix army marching to Beethoven for quite a while! It's surreal to say the least and lacks any kind of explanation, although I'm pretty sure that there is some kind of hidden political message in there somewhere. Trying to find it is high-on impossible though!R100 won't be everyone's cup of tea. The best thing to do is to leave your brain outside the door and just go along for the big barmy ride! It turns out to be quite an ambitious little number, however not all of its ideas are effective or explored enough. One thing's for sure though, you won't forget it in a hurry! I for one would much rather see a film I'm going to remember the next day than some throwaway action film that will be forgotten in minutes. I admired R100 quite a bit.Read more weird and wacky reviews at: www.asdaman.wordpress.com

Tweekums In the opening scene we see a woman applying makeup in a restaurant bathroom; she then goes and sits opposite a man who starts talking about Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy'. The next thing we know she stands up and kicks him in the head! He leaves the restaurant but is attacked again. We then learn that this man has joined the 'Bondage' club. Its rules are simple; membership lasts for one year and cannot be cancelled and during that time the member may be attacked or humiliated at any moment and he may not resist in any way: protagonist Takafumi Katayama is one such member. He expects to be attacked when he is out on his own but becomes worried when the women start turning up at his work and approaching his family; humiliation in front of strangers is one thing but work and family (including his young son and comatose wife) are different. Things get even more dangerous for him, and a lot weirder, when one of the women has an accident and dies and the club seeks its revenge.This is one of those rare films that will leave the viewer wondering what they just watched; it was that weird… but in a surprisingly fun way. The viewer will often wonder if what they are watching is meant to be really happening or if it is just a twisted dream. The washed out colour, almost black and white at times, adds to the sense that it isn't quite real as it might be. The random nature of much of what we see makes the film funny, disturbing and in one scene even disgusting. It also means it isn't a film that will be to everybody's taste; some will find the weirdness a delight but I'm sure plenty will find it so weird it is boring. Overall I'd say give it a go; you might like it.These comments are based on watching the film in Japanese with English subtitles.

Paul Magne Haakonsen This movie was weird, even by Japanese standards.I enjoy Asian cinema, and it is only rare that a movie turns out to be not worth really spending time on watching. And I must admit that "R100" turned out to be one such movie. I managed to get through two-thirds of the movie before I had to give up out of sheer boredom.The storyline was unfathomably lacking appeal and anything interesting. It is about a man who join an exclusive club in which he is committed for one year, without the chance of breaking his contract during that time. The club, which is a gentleman's club, provides bondage services, and the dominatrix women start showing up at odd places, abusing the man.And that was basically it. It was just one step away from being softcore pornography. Sure, there is an audience for this particular movie, but wow was I bored.The above-mentioned storyline was just ridiculous and unappealing. As you sit there and watch the movie, you can't help but think "what is the purpose of this movie?".The scene with the Queen of Saliva is without a doubt one of the most disturbing filmed sequences I have seen in a long, long time. Not that it was bizarre or horrific in any real sense, but the way that it was shot, the contents of the scene, and the use of repetitive shots, it just culminated in something really, really out of the ordinary."R100" is not one of the brightest moments in Japanese cinema history. I didn't even make it to the end of this movie, and I can honestly say that I will not attempt to give this movie a second chance and try to make it to the end. Watched, bagged and tagged...