Fantasia XXVIII Review: Yugo Sakamoto’s BABY ASSASSINS: NICE DAYS Delivers Excitement, Emotion and Evolution
8.5 min. read
Since I run a semi-popular martial arts cinema Instagram page and YouTube channel, when middle-aged men saddle into my DM’s and, with sticky fingers, pound out the phrase, “I like Japanese girls,” I like to think they’re referring to Chisato Sugimoto and Mahiro Fukagawa, the titular characters in the Baby Assassins franchise. This way, I retain a modicum of innocence and my sanity remains fully intact.
Which is to say, they should be talking about Baby Assassins. In fact, everyone should be talking about Baby Assassins because they’re bloody great.
As part of FANTASIA 2024, I was treated to a screener of the third film in the series; the oddly titled BABY ASSASSINS: NICE DAYS. Those not the familiar with the franchise, imagine the cuteness of anime girls combined with the mind-blowing action of the underrated Hydra. It’s a somewhat unusual mix that works so much better than you’d think it would.
Settling down to watch the third film, I expected much of the same. And I was fine with that. Having loved the first two films, I knew the formula worked. The series had become a delicious homecooked meal: warm, inviting and comforting. Boy oh boy, I was not ready for what I got.
As I type this review, it’s July 15th, 2024, and Baby Assassins: Nice Days is not only my favorite action movie of the year, but also my favorite film of the year. And yes, I’ve seen Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In. Director, Yugo Sakamoto, seems to have listened to fans. While we all love the first two films, the shtick of having big action sequences at the beginning and end of the films, and very little in between, was wearing a little thin. Especially when you have action maestro, Kensuke Sonomura, in charge of your set pieces. But we’ll come to him in a minute.
Baby Assassins: Nice Days is, much like the first two films, an action comedy, but, for the first time, it feels more like an action film than a comedy film. It’s still cute. It’s still funny. But the quantity of martial arts and gunplay has been upped significantly. It’s a beautiful thing.
The plot is simple. Our two leads are hired to take someone out (as they’re wont to do). They turn up to the hit and someone else is there to kill their target. Someone not to be fucked with. The two ladies – as well as two new partners – then work on tracking down both the man that foiled their hit and their target. It’s a light cat-and-mouse film, ultimately, and it’s joyous.
There are themes in Baby Assassins: Nice Days. One of them is “disorders.” I say that in the nicest way. For example, it’s hinted at that our bad guy may have a type of autism. Mahiro Fukagawa (played by the incredible Saori Izawa) quite obviously has social anxiety. This theme is leaned on, but we’re never really bashed over the head with it. It’s less explorable and more just something that is. These people have mental health issues. That’s it. It humanizes the characters and, unlike, say, the Thai martial arts film, Chocolate, is never offensive. If anything, it’s rather endearing.
The film also explores the relationship between Chisato and Mahiro. I won’t spoil anything but it’s Mahiro’s twentieth birthday in the film, which Chisato (played by Akari Takaishi) forgets. The emotional investment in this wonderful subplot is a breath of fresh air and, at times, truly touching. There’s a scene where Mahiro shares her first ever beer with Chisato and I was smiling throughout, like an absolute lunatic. It goes beyond its traditional cuteness. These girls aren’t just “two goofy friends.” They love each other. Baby Assassins: Nice Days has a big old heart and it’s one of the most enjoyable parts of the film.
Even one of the new characters – who’s the film’s “arsehole” – has an emotional moment where she opens up and reveals exactly why she’s an arsehole. It’s a tender moment with just the right amount of comedy sprinkled in. And the whole film is like this. Wonderful emotional beats mixed with the typical cheeky comedy. This outing feels different.
And I can’t even cover some of the more emotion-heavy beats because they’re huge spoilers. Let’s just say, if you’ve seen some of the posters, you know what moments I’m talking about. Mahiro has a fantastic – if small – subplot where she asks herself, “Am I good enough?” Again, another weighty theme in the film.
“Emotional weight? Themes? Get that bullshit out of here! What about the action, goddamnit!?” Well, strap yourself in, because I’m about to blow the roof off this motherfucker.
In Baby Assassins: Nice Days, Kensuke Sonomora delivers the best action sequences of the…year? Decade? Century? Yes, they’re that fucking good.
Sonomura’s understanding of body mechanics is beyond special. He knows exactly how the body works, in away that’s beyond my comprehension. All I can do is sit back and giddily squeal at what’s going on on my screen.
I can’t even explain it properly. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the action sequences in this film. They’re literally visual poetry. The action design is chaotic but methodical, crisp but loose… It’s both inside and outside the box. Remember when the solemn madman, David Blaine, hit the scene and practically reinvented magic? He was giving us the same shit we’d seen – closeup magic, illusions, street magic etc. But he was delivering them in such a fresh and unique way. That’s Sonomura. He’s not reinventing the wheel but somehow, he’s done the impossible – he’s brought a new shape of wheel to the world. That metaphor is ridiculous, but I can’t think of a better way to explain it. He’s showing off what the body can do in ways I never thought imaginable. And it’s all Sonomura. It’s not Jackie Chan. It’s not Donnie Yen. Sonomura is Sonomura and he’s a true wizard of action. I’d say I’m more excited for what he does next than what Kenji Tanigaki does next. And I’ll die on this hill.
As well as being Sakamoto’s most balanced Baby Assassins film, it’s the first time I feel like he’s really leaned on the talents of the leads. These girls are special, and contrary to what the first (and to a degree, the second) film may have implied, they really have a lot of range. There’s a scene in Baby Assassins: Nice Days where a bloodied Saori Izawa is given a particular decision (which I won’t spoil), and the gravitas she has is remarkable. She commands the screen. These aren’t your schoolgirl uniform wearing, peace sign throwing anime girls. Our assassins have depth.
And that’s it. That’s the key. These two lovable characters really do feel like “ours.” Like Marvel fans latched onto Steve Rogers, I want to see where Mahiro and Chisato go. I want five more Baby Assassins films. I want to see them flourish and thrive. I want to laugh and cry with them. And I want to watch them kick a massive amount of arse, of course.
Baby Assassins: Nice Days cemented this series in my heart. It reminded me that this isn’t just shtick. It’s not just “cutesy shit.” These films have range, darling. I feel like there’s so much more to explore. This film gave me all I can ever ask for and that’s a rarity. As an action cinema fan, I’m always clamoring for people beating the shit out of each other, but I got that and so much more. I think genre fans will be very surprised.
If you get a chance to watch Baby Assassins: Nice Days on the big screen, make sure you do. As the kids say, it’s an absolute “banger.” No other film has made me smile this much, this year. If you can’t catch it in a cinema, fingers crossed that it’ll hit streaming/physical media soon.
Watch Baby Assassins: Nice Days. I guarantee you’ll have a nice day(s). I’m so sorry.
Baby Assassins: Nice Days was reviewed for the 28th Fantasia International Film Festival which runs from July 18 through August 4.
