Hasebe's debut feature could definitely pass for a crazy '60s films from his mentor, Seijun Suzuki. It's a colorful spy spoof about a couple (Akira Kobayashi and Chieko Matsubara, who starred in Tokyo Drifter) who are caught between several groups, Americans, yakuza and lady ninjas, searching for lost WWII era gold that Matsubara's father is rumored to have hidden. It's the lady ninjas who give the film its American title (the Japanese title translates to "Don't Touch Me, I'm Dangerous"): dressed in black tights, they fight with razor sharp tape measurer swords, chewing gum bullets and 45 rpm records, used as ninja stars. The use of color is amazing and will definitely recall Tokyo Drifter. Released on DVD in the US in 2000 by Image, the disc is pretty terrible, with hardcoded and often misspelled subtitles which often disappear when anything white appears on screen. This probably accounts for why the story is difficult to follow at times, but this is the kind of movie you watch more for the image anyway. I'd kill to see this on a nice Blu Ray. Highly recommended.

I knew enough about BLACK TIGHT KILLERS to not get my hopes up too high expecting a sleaze-fest like Yasuharu Hasebe's later-made and awesome pinku-shocker, ASSAULT! JACK THE RIPPER (which many - myself included - believe to be amongst the finest pinku films ever made). Even so - this one was a fun and quirky 60's-style crime/mystery that works well for what it is...A military photographer takes a cute stewardess out to dinner where she is promptly kidnapped. Deciding that he has fallen in love with the girl, our "hero" decides to investigate her kidnapping himself, and ends up having run-ins with cops, gangsters, crooked businessmen, and a gang of go-go dancing ninja-girls who use chewing-gum bullets, deadly 45-records, and razor-sharp measuring tapes as weapons. It all revolves around the kidnapped girl and some stolen gold, and several groups attempts to retrieve the "goods"...BLACK TIGHT KILLERS is a fun, brainless diversion. Hasebe makes good and stylish use of color, silly back-drops and eccentric characters to bring together an entertaining film. I can't say that I enjoyed it as much as the later, "rougher" pinku material to come out of Nikkatsu Studios, but it's interesting to see Hasebe's directing "progression". Fans of 60s-style neo-noirish crime/action films will get a kick out of this one. Hardcore sleaze and pinku fans who grab this one strictly because Hasebe's name is attached to it will more than likely be disappointed...7/10

This movie is very similar in atmosphere to Seijun Suzuki's Tokyo Drifter. The best thing about it is the incredibly wild use of color, something one surprisingly rarely sees exploited in movies (aside from the occasional Dick Tracy or Umbrellas of Cherbourg). The film really goes all out on wild stylization and campy action. Also, no movie that features go-go dancing at regular intervals can be completely bad, regardless of how poor the dancing the is. However, the plot never really becomes interesting enough to justify the the love lavished on the sets and look of the film. Suzuki does this better in Tokyo Drifter, and if you like surreal sixties Japanese nuttiness, Branded to Kill massacres both. This is worth a rental but don't have too high expectations.

The "Black Tight Killers" are a group of go-go dancing ninja women who use 45 rpm records and bubble gum as weapons. The central character is a war photographer who meets an airline stewardess and unknowingly enters into an adventure for money smuggled into the country by her father at the close of WWII. The money is pursued by Japanese yakuza, American gangsters and the title five with spirited action that very nicely reflects the colors and pop art flavor of the day. All is played with a tongue in cheek style that nicely parodies the spy adventure films of the time. Enjoy the fun. Supposedly also known as "Don't Touch Me, I'm Dangerous."