Riichi, he of the devil may care attitude and face of bruises, still pals around with childhood best friends Yuki and the recently released from reform school Toketsu. New to the equation is Riich's girlfriend Ryo. Riichi and Toketsu get a job at a bar and do some side business thuggery. Ryo and Riichi breakup after a siren from their past emerges, Nakomi, whom Riichi pursues. This throws a kink in Riichi's friendships, with Toketsu because Nakomi urges him to quit his wilder ways and with Yuki, who has a crush on Ryo's girlfriend. But, cowtowing to his hormonal desire sort of sucks out the unbridled life and action that is part of Riichi's nature. He even dilutes his impulses enough that he finds himself beaten up by old nemesis Sada. It's all part of the pains of gowing up, and the three friends will find more bittersweet pain and self discovery as life goes on.

While I was not as enamored with Innocent Blood as I was with Nostalgia, Innocent Blood is still a good movie. I liked the performances and the slapdash plotting, but I just didn't fall in love with it. Miike's eclectic and surreal tastes fits with the reflective mood of the film. With Miike behind the wheel, the film can careen from the dramatic to silly at the drop of a hat, as well as straddle both at the same time. His Felliniesque imagination can turn something bland, like Yuki's geeky story about looking for a sixty-seven degree angle in nature into a scene reminiscent of a live action Phantom Tollbooth. And, it feels very appropriate because, as a nostalgic film, memory is often peppered with things being slightly more weird, wonderful, or tragic than they were at the time.

The DVD: Artsmagic.

Picture: Anamorphic Widescreen. Being a product of the "v-cinema" (drect-to-video) market, I was expecting the muddy image quality that plagues many Miike v-cinema era DVD transfers. Actually, it wasnt quite as bad as I thought it would be. In terms of color and sharpness, everything could be slightly more vibrant and the image tends to be a tad bright and soft. Minor edge enhancement and compression is noticeable in a few scenes but not to a degree that it seriously hampers viewing enjoyment. Also, I doubt it was flagged properly and was given some faux anamorphic treatment because it has two layers of widescreen bars, slightly gray upper bars on top of black bars.

Sound: Japanese language, Dolby 2.0 Stereo or 5.1 Surround tracks with optional English subtitles. Pretty standard affair. Dialogue is nice and clean and centered. The music score and fx noise are settled in the rear and side speakers, though not with much stereo fx. Subtitle translation appears quite good with no glaring errors. The soundtrack hinges on some bluesy electric guitar riffs that get a little annoying.

Extras: Bios/Filmographies--- Takashi Miike Interview (17:17)--- Original Trailer and Sleeve Art.--- Osaka History and Culture featurette (8:39).

Conclusion: Entertaining little film. An adolescent tale with bits of black comedy and a fantastical slant. The transfer is okay, making this a decent purchase for fans of foreign cinema and the anarchic world of Takashi Miike.