The Rug Cop: Review
The Rug Cop (Zura Deka) (2006) Director - Minoru Kawasaki Reviewed by: Darren Cenerini The Minoru Kawasaki collection continues. Next up -The Rug Cop, which I'll be honest, I had the lowest hopes for of the three films. Detective films always amuse me because they're so ranged, being genuinely meaningful and deep (Suicide Circle) and sometimes they're so campy and far fetched that you can't help but smile. The Rug Cop though is a third category all in its own, and I can't quite accurately describe it. It's a trouble with identity, super hero rejects, Cop drama with yet again some musical numbers. I guess this is a trend in Kawasaki's films. So does Rug Cop work? Or is it as flat and cringe worthy as a really bad toupee? The story begins with an armed robbery, where a man and his ventriloquist dummy are holding an office hostage at gunpoint. Enter Mr. Rug, a misfit detective who keeps getting shifted around various precincts because nobody wants him. After discovering that the dummy is the one responsible (and not the ventriloquist...don't ask), we discover why he's called Mr. Rug. He can throw his toupee with deadly accuracy, and it also seems to be weighted since it shatters vases, among other things. Mr. Rug is then transferred to a new precinct which is full of misfits for the most part. These guys have powers just like Mr. Rug, but they're all pretty different. Detective Shorty is a weightlifting champion who can also run really fast; Detective Old Man is an elderly man who recites the worst puns ever; Detective Fatty is just that, a fatty. Except he can subdue foes with his body sweat; Detective Handsome is so good looking he makes women swoon over him with the mere cock of his head; there's also the police chief and his office assistant, the quite gorgeous Tonko; and last but certainly not least is Detective Big Dick who, once aroused, has a lightsaber penis (I really, really wish I was making this up). The squad starts receiving DVD's from a terrorist group threatening they have a nuclear device and they'll blow up Tokyo unless 5 billion yen is delivered to them within 48 hours. I've seen a few police dramas from around the globe, and certainly Japan is no exception. When watching The Rug Cop, I was immediately reminded of TV dramas because of their structure and irritatingly long theme songs, about 5 minutes in length, that showcase still pictures of Mr. Rug looking longingly into the distance. This happens twice in the film. I don't usually hate these kinds of things (they're quite prominent in most Japanese TV shows and older movies), but when it happens twice in the span of less than twenty minutes? Not so good. I'm sure that this was intended to be a joke when making the film, and it's possibly even funny to natives of Japan, but purely from an entertainment side of things it's exceptionally tacky. I should mention though that there were a few jokes that actually worked, but most of them fell as flat as Detective Old Man's puns, double theme song especially included. The story actually gets kind of interesting in the end, but after the twists are all revealed then it gets annoying again when the characters all revert back to their stereotypes. Unlike Executive Koala though, the main problem the characters must overcome in this one is the central focus throughout most of the story, and is solved gradually rather than in the last five minutes. But there's so many things that are just wrong with the movie that it doesn't sit right with you by the end. It's hard to explain, or even to point out exactly when it stops working. A large part of it is in the characters. For all the bother they do setting them up, there's very little of any of them except for Mr. Rug and Big Dick. There are also inconsistencies throughout, one scene especially when Shorty is told to run and find Mr. Rug, and Fatty is sent with him. Now, earlier they state Shorty can run ridiculously fast, but now all of a sudden Detective Fatty can keep up with him. It was glaring errors like this that took away from being immersed in the film, or even believing they had any crazy abilities to begin with. There are so many errors like this that you can't help but be dumbfounded that a director wouldn't review his own script. I have to admit that I liked The Rug Cop much more than Executive Koala, but that isn't saying much as it's really the same as picking the lesser of two evils. However, there is something strangely charming about Mr. Rug, and he's extremely likeable from the moment he starts to speak. In that respect, as much as I did not like the movie, I was fascinated to see where the strange tale would take him and his flying hair piece. I'm on the fence with The Rug Cop; it's a B-movie beyond what you'd usually expect, so if you're a fan of such films I'd highly recommend it. For the more mainstream or folks who enjoy a good police drama, this isn't the film for you. The Rug Cop trailer.....http://youtube.com/watch?v=RwEeW73gVhA
The Rug Cop (Zura Deka) (2006) Director - Minoru Kawasaki Reviewed by: Darren Cenerini The Minoru Kawasaki collection continues. Next up -The Rug Cop, which I'll be honest, I had the lowest hopes for of the three films. Detective films always amuse me because they're so ranged, being genuinely meaningful and deep (Suicide Circle) and sometimes they're so campy and far fetched that you can't help but smile. The Rug Cop though is a third category all in its own, and I can't quite accurately describe it. It's a trouble with identity, super hero rejects, Cop drama with yet again some musical numbers. I guess this is a trend in Kawasaki's films. So does Rug Cop work? Or is it as flat and cringe worthy as a really bad toupee? The story begins with an armed robbery, where a man and his ventriloquist dummy are holding an office hostage at gunpoint. Enter Mr. Rug, a misfit detective who keeps getting shifted around various precincts because nobody wants him. After discovering that the dummy is the one responsible (and not the ventriloquist...don't ask), we discover why he's called Mr. Rug. He can throw his toupee with deadly accuracy, and it also seems to be weighted since it shatters vases, among other things. Mr. Rug is then transferred to a new precinct which is full of misfits for the most part. These guys have powers just like Mr. Rug, but they're all pretty different. Detective Shorty is a weightlifting champion who can also run really fast; Detective Old Man is an elderly man who recites the worst puns ever; Detective Fatty is just that, a fatty. Except he can subdue foes with his body sweat; Detective Handsome is so good looking he makes women swoon over him with the mere cock of his head; there's also the police chief and his office assistant, the quite gorgeous Tonko; and last but certainly not least is Detective Big Dick who, once aroused, has a lightsaber penis (I really, really wish I was making this up). The squad starts receiving DVD's from a terrorist group threatening they have a nuclear device and they'll blow up Tokyo unless 5 billion yen is delivered to them within 48 hours. I've seen a few police dramas from around the globe, and certainly Japan is no exception. When watching The Rug Cop, I was immediately reminded of TV dramas because of their structure and irritatingly long theme songs, about 5 minutes in length, that showcase still pictures of Mr. Rug looking longingly into the distance. This happens twice in the film. I don't usually hate these kinds of things (they're quite prominent in most Japanese TV shows and older movies), but when it happens twice in the span of less than twenty minutes? Not so good. I'm sure that this was intended to be a joke when making the film, and it's possibly even funny to natives of Japan, but purely from an entertainment side of things it's exceptionally tacky. I should mention though that there were a few jokes that actually worked, but most of them fell as flat as Detective Old Man's puns, double theme song especially included. The story actually gets kind of interesting in the end, but after the twists are all revealed then it gets annoying again when the characters all revert back to their stereotypes. Unlike Executive Koala though, the main problem the characters must overcome in this one is the central focus throughout most of the story, and is solved gradually rather than in the last five minutes. But there's so many things that are just wrong with the movie that it doesn't sit right with you by the end. It's hard to explain, or even to point out exactly when it stops working. A large part of it is in the characters. For all the bother they do setting them up, there's very little of any of them except for Mr. Rug and Big Dick. There are also inconsistencies throughout, one scene especially when Shorty is told to run and find Mr. Rug, and Fatty is sent with him. Now, earlier they state Shorty can run ridiculously fast, but now all of a sudden Detective Fatty can keep up with him. It was glaring errors like this that took away from being immersed in the film, or even believing they had any crazy abilities to begin with. There are so many errors like this that you can't help but be dumbfounded that a director wouldn't review his own script. I have to admit that I liked The Rug Cop much more than Executive Koala, but that isn't saying much as it's really the same as picking the lesser of two evils. However, there is something strangely charming about Mr. Rug, and he's extremely likeable from the moment he starts to speak. In that respect, as much as I did not like the movie, I was fascinated to see where the strange tale would take him and his flying hair piece. I'm on the fence with The Rug Cop; it's a B-movie beyond what you'd usually expect, so if you're a fan of such films I'd highly recommend it. For the more mainstream or folks who enjoy a good police drama, this isn't the film for you. The Rug Cop trailer.....