Wild Zero

With dvd chapters boasting titles such as "Zombie BBQ" and "Radioactive Hotpants" you know this won't be your normal Asian film about flesh-eating aliens battling a Japanese rock band. Wild Zero (2000) marks the directorial debut of Tetsuro Tekeuchi, whose previous work with MTV Japan might account for his rock 'n' roll connections to Guitar Wolf, the self-proclaimed "coolest rock band in the world." With a career that began in the mid-nineties and a reputation that is now slowly making inroads to the U.S., the pompadour bearing musicians are obviously working hard to match their own hype. From their names (Guitar Wolf, Drum Wolf, and Bass Wolf), to their love of leather, hair, and sunglasses, this is one band that is proud to carry the torch passed on by The Ramones - and they play it full tilt. With the members of Guitar Wolf relegated to upholding the iconography for all that is cool, somebody else needs to carry the burden of actually moving the plot along with dialogue, general human interest, and the other pitfalls of being the protagonist - and that duty falls to Ace (Masashi Endo). Ace is a huge Guitar Wolf fan who emulates his heroes and then, inadvertently, walks in on an armed and deadly face-off between Guitar Wolf and a corrupt club manager - a move that saves Guitar Wolf's life (and costs the club manager some fingers). A disoriented Ace is rewarded with a special whistle and a blood-brothers handshake by the lead singer himself and told that if he ever needs help all he needs to do is blow on the whistle. Even if Wild Zero had kept aliens and zombies out of the picture, Ace probably would have been blowing the whistle just to deal with the love interest that would soon enter his life. But this isn't When Harry Met Sally, or even The Crying Game and, yes, there are U.F.O.s and zombies to deal with (not to mention a pissed-off club manager with missing fingers), so everything converges into one big, giddy, explosion-laden climax of extra-terrestrial blood, fire, and "ROCK & ROLL!" (as many characters continually remind us). Speaking of rock 'n' roll explosions, the Synapse Films dvd of Wild Zero comes equipped with what is touted as "the first ever dvd "drinking game." This is how it works: every time someone drinks, someone combs their hair, fire shoots out of anything, anyone says "rock 'n' roll," something explodes, or a zombie's head is shot off, the small image of a beer glass appears in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Just the attention the on-screen characters give their hair will be enough to send seasoned drinkers to the detention corner well before the half-way mark. Other goodies include a Guitar Wolf bio, where you can read about his claim to actually have been raised by wolves, or news on how he signed onto his first American label by leaping into a ceiling fan at a live show in N.Y.C., as well as a discography, trailer, and a behind-the-scenes gallery montage. For more information about Wild Zero, visit Synapse Films. To order Wild Zero, go to TCM Shopping. by Pablo Kjolseth