Strip Mahjong: Battle Royale

What can I say about "Strip Mahjong: Battle Royale"? I could write a book. Won't. But could. First, this is the ultimate "guilty pleasure" movie - it is really a bad film in most ways, with little redeeming value - except that it is an outrageous hoot!The premise is simple - four beautiful girls wake up in this "bunker-like" place (low production value here) that is really an underground TV/video/web/online studio where a life or death game show is played called "Strip Mahjong: Battle Royale" Ha! So the four girls play mahjong against each other and when they lose they have to strip off clothes and when they are naked - they die.End of plot.Oh, but what I LOVE about this movie is that there is so much more than that!First - all four Japanese girls are gorgeous, along with the girl who is the game show of death "hostess." And she is, by the way, some weird girl! She keeps saying - "Nyah Nyah Nyah" which is translated in the subtitles as: "Nyah, Nyah, Nyah"!!!! I ain't gotta clue! And when they bring her into the game as a player, things really get crazy! (She cheats!)but the real treat in this movie is the surprise - this movie's wit and sarcasm. And that comes from the "host" and his silent, S&M leather-masked sidekick. They are a riot.I won't go into too much detail, but just watch it closely, - watch the pantomime of the silent sidekick, listen to the "host" and his comments during the game.Of course, the "point" of this movie is to watch these very lovely young Japanese women undress one by one. The nice thing is, the movie goes way beyond just this element and actually makes it a fun, and demented flick!The subtitles are good. The acting is awful and great at the same time. Production values are non-existent. No graphic violence or sex. But NOT for the kiddies! Lots of topless and thigh closeups.And of course - you learn a thing or two about mahjong!!! (You really do... that is what's so... weird about this!)Bottom line - watch it for the fun factor alone. It ain't no "Cloud Atlas" or "Lincoln" but hey... it is just 77 minutes of time spent.... unlike those others, that seem like they last an ETERNITY!

I tried to watch this to the end. The acting was awful. The story line was awful. and if you are looking for nudity it really doesn't deliver on that as well

[STRIP MAHJONG: BATTLE ROYALE - (2011) - Widescreen - Japanese w/ English subtitles - 77 minutes - Directed by Mark P. Forever (?)] As I've stated many times in my reviews, when calibrating soft-core movies, one has to use a different yardstick to review and rate them. That yardstick has to be adjusted again when evaluating American vs. European vs. Asian soft-core (I personally prefer the Euro and Asian flicks - the American ones are usually idiotically juvenile, or patched into horror/torture flicks, which I personally don't get at all). The unstated but ultimate purpose of these flicks is not only to entertain but to stimulate the viewer, and the best do both. But there are very few that succeed. If you don't believe this, I envy your naiveté. But there are a few, thankfully, like the recent 'Tokyo Train Girl' series (Vol.'s 1, 2 and 4 especially - read my reviews of all four for specs). This flick, however, isn't one of them...The budget here is non-existent; the entire film takes place in one dark dungeon/cell, and the cast is comprised of 5 women and 2 guys. The chicks are forcibly there to play strip-Mahjong to pay off gambling debts, and wear shock collars that are controlled/detonated by the deliriously depraved MC's toy ray gun (no joke). For those of us who revel in Asian exploitation, it gets a bit tedious waiting for things to get underway, and by that I mean undressed. Eventually, and thankfully, the girls are shamefully compromised as we watch them in the throes of the bizarre and bitchingly boring game of mahjong - it might help your entertainment quotient if you knew something about this game, but I'm assuming if you're not Asian or in a retirement community that's highly unlikely. Besides, we signed on only for the nudity, not the sportsmanship on display.Losers get a taste of electricity, cheaters are given carte blanche, and the winner walks - there's not much else to discuss. It has nothing to do with 'Battle Royale', 'natch, that's just what drew suckers like me along for the ride. But I know I'm not alone in my undying desire to see women strip for my viewing pleasure, nor am I ashamed of this voyeuristic quirk. And being a connoisseur of transgressive exploitation (they don't call me 'Dr. No It All' for nothing), it makes for required viewing. Drinking and controlled substances adds much to your level of enjoyment here and, though I don't typically condone such proclivity, must admit they've always worked for me. Those of you who worship at the same church know who you are, the rest of you have likely ceased reading already.So, am I endorsing this flick to my like-minded brethren? Can't say that I am, but can't give it a thumbs down either - it has its moments of both surreal sexual splendor and sordid squalor that appeals to miscreants like me, so you'll have to adjust your yardstick accordingly (pun intended) based on your own tastes for the debased. As Socrates said, "Know Thyself", though I don't think he had this flick in mind when he did. 3 to 3 ½ stars, depending on your penchant for perversity.

On the face of it this should be just another Japanese B-Movie in the soft porn genre. To an extent that's what it is. In the film four women have to play mahjong and if they lose they have to strip and if they lose all their clothes then they are killed. The film makes do avoid total nudity. In an unexpected twist the characters of the unfortunate women are well developed and their stories and reasons for being in this mess are plausible. The acting and script are much better than you might expect. The problem is that I can't tell if this was intentional or not. I suspect it was as the strip scenes and partial nudity are filmed in such a way to minimise any titillation at all. The front man character, the expert card player, and the be-thonged enforcer are wonderfully overdone and add a touch of levity. So this is an unexpectedly cerebral film which just happens to have topless women in it. Strange, very strange.

This movie was not what I expected. It was too violent for me. The acting was fair, the dialog was fair, not a family movie. It is about a deadly game show where the contestants don't have a choice about playing or about being killed. I barely got to the end of it. I stayed to find out what happened to the winner. I would not really recommend it.

Totally off the wall japanese cinema and the cover is reflective of the content typical of the genre do not expect too much.

This film is titled and cover illustrated in a way that suggests it's just a soft p0rn film.It's actually well written and acted, and brilliantly lit and shot so deserves better.You might even learn something about playing mah-jong from it!