Sex Galaxy Trailer…

I hope this is real!

I.K.U. (Director: Shu Lea Cheang 2000)

I.K.U’s sub-heading: this is not love; this is sex – a Japanese sci-fi porn feature, and the scarlet DVD cover showing a sprawled, if clothed, cyber J-chick clutching a see-through plastic penis shaped gun, certainly gives the viewer a strong impression of what is to come (forgive the pun). The word Iku literally translates as orgasm in Japanese, as in ‘I’m coming’. However what do you really expect from sci-fi porn? I had little idea, no preconceptions and no past viewing experience to draw on. So what is it all about then?

Well the idea of I.K.U. is that the Genom Corporation has produced a breed of replicants who freely copulate with pretty much everyone they meet and record the orgasmic pleasure, which is later uploaded via the penis gun thing, providing the data for their virtual sex experience. The replicant in question is Reiko: a shape changing sex-bot, who goes from one sexual encounter to the next, gathering her sticky data in the name of progress and fun. Basically I.K.U. has a strong if not particularly original sci-fi concept at its heart. Unfortunately that is the total extent of the film’s plot and ambition. It fails to explore the social or moral consequences involved in this android sex industry. Nor does it explore the usual robotic sci-fi issues of slavery, what constitutes life and the artificial evolution of free will.

I.K.U. has many similarities with setting of Blade Runner and there are some obvious references to look out for, including: a silver origami unicorn and the “Do you love me?” “Do you trust me?” lines. Also, interestingly, there is two ending availably to watch, which may also be a homage to the two released versions of Blade Runner. However neither changes the nature of the film as the two versions of Blade Runner did. Indeed apart from the basic concept, there is little real similarities between the two films. Blade Runner gives the viewer an atmospheric, noir-ish dark future, with many moral grey areas. Instead I.K.U. gives you a non-stop kaleidoscope of hallucinatory erotic scenes.

Shu Lea Cheang uses every trick in the book, including: industrial noises, avant-garde electronica, cut-up editing, constantly moving cameras, CGI, vibrant lighting and shaky hand-held cameras, to produce a visual feast during every sex scene. Sometime it all becomes too much and it feels like an industrial-techno promo rather than a film in its own right. However fans of the Matrix and cyber-culture in general should be impressed by what they see. Occasionally the CGI looks a little dated and a bit basic, and some of the scenes work less well than others, feeling like bad 80s soft porn. The film has little staory or plot, with very little in the way of decipherable or meaningful dialogue. Indeed much of the incidental conversations sound like they were recorded underwater and slips from Japanese to English at random. And there lies the problem, there is really little else to I.K.U. than sex. However I can not see the hard-core porn audience being particularly impressed with what is on offer here. The sex scenes are generally simulated with only one real ‘money shots’ (and that is filmed through a fish tank!) and the highly intrusive arty camera work, editing and effects would really get in the way of practical functionality of pornography. The women are highly sexual, although certainly not classically good looking and the camera rarely stays still long enough for your average porn connoisseur to achieve unbuttoning their fly, let alone an erection! The soft-core and erotica audience will probably find the film too weird and not romantic enough to be a real turn on. Unfortunately I.K.U. is also far too explicit to really be considered art house cinema, which in turn will alienate almost everyone else. The sci-fi element is largely undeveloped and is predominately told through net-feed type text between bouts of humping, which will leave the sci-fi fans wanting more depth (oo-er!).

However maybe all this is missing the point? The film is an explicit, erotic, post-modern, colourful and a trippy visual sexy whirlwind, which is ultimately a little disappointing and unfulfilling (sounds familiar?), although worth watching as long as you are not offended by explicit and frequent sex and nudity. I.K.U. is not so much a porno nor a sci-fi film, but instead it would provide the psycho-sexual backdrop in that fictional cyberpunk nightclub, which you always wanted to go to, but unfortunately it only exists in the films. This really is as close as you are likely to get. It is hard to recommend I.K.U. as a must see film, as it really is not that good, however it is still somehow worth watching if you get the chance.