Maid-Droid

Maid-Droid (メイドロイド) aka Rōjin to Rabudōru: Watashi ga Shochō ni Natta Toki (老人とラブドール　私が初潮になった時, lit. The Old Man and the Love Doll: The Time of My First Period) and AI Kōkando Sensaa Tōsai: Maid-Droid (AI（アイ）高感度センサー搭載　メイドロイド)[3][4] is a 2009 Japanese science-fiction fantasy pink film directed by Naoyuki Tomomatsu.[5] Among the awards it won at the Pink Grand Prix ceremony was the Silver Prize for Best Film.[6]

Maid-Droid
Poster for Maid-Droid (2009) in its theatrical release as The Old Man and the Love Doll: The Time of My First Period
Directed byNaoyuki Tomomatsu[1][2]
Produced byMasaru Ikeda
Written byChisato Ōgawara
StarringAkiho Yoshizawa
Anri Suzuki
Mari Yamaguchi
Yōko Satomi
CinematographyKenji Oyamada
Edited bySakai Editing
Production
company
Gensō Haikyūsha (幻想配給社)
Distributed byXces
Release date
  • January 30, 2009 (2009-01-30)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

Synopsis

In the near future, Ueno is a man who has been raised with his parents' cyborg maid Maria. His parents pass away while he is a teenager, leaving Maria to care for Ueno. As an adult, Ueno's attachment to Maria leads him to attempt to program her for sex. This attempted consummation of their relationship fails, and when Ueno is an old man, Maria's power supply comes to an end, leaving Ueno alone. Meanwhile, a series of rapes occur in the city and Detective Yuri Akagi suspects a droid is responsible.[2][4]

Cast
  • Akiho Yoshizawa as Maria[1][7]
  • Anri Suzuki (鈴木杏里) as Yuri
  • Yōko Satomi as Woman A
  • Mari Yamaguchi (山口真里) as Fiancee
  • Masayoshi Nogami (野上正義) as Old Man
  • Hiroyuki Kaneko (金子弘幸) as Rape Machine
  • 如春 as Ueno
  • Hiroshi Fujita (藤田浩) as Otaku critic
  • Abō (亜坊) as Detective
  • Kōji Senō (妹尾公資) as Detective

Critical appraisal

Maid-Droid won several honors at the annual Pink Grand Prix. Besides winning the second place in the Best Film category, Naoyuki Tomomatsu was awarded Best Director for his work on this film. Prizes for Best Actor (Masayoshi Nogami) and Best Screenplay (Chisato Ōgawara) were also given for Maid-Droid.[6]

The German-language site molodezhnaja, however, gives Maid-Droid a less-than-positive review, awarding it two out of five stars. While admitting that it can be enjoyed for its trashiness, and some good sex scenes, the review complains about the perceived misogynistic message behind the film. A scene in which young robots are praised while women over 30 are labeled "ugly" and physically abused for this reason is singled out as a particularly offensive jab at feminism. The review concludes that despite a few interesting ideas, the film as a whole is a clumsy misfire on the part of director Tomomatsu.[3]

Availability

Maid-Droid was released under the title Maid-Droid (メイドロイド) as an original video in Japan in 2008.[5] The pink film studio, Xces gave the film a theatrical release in Japan on January 30, 2009 under the title Rōjin to Rabudōru: Watashi ga Shochō ni Natta Toki (老人とラブドール　私が初潮になった時, lit. The Old Man and the Love Doll: The Time of My First Period).[1] It was released on DVD in Japan on March 6, 2009 under the title AI Kōkando Sensaa Tōsai: Maid-Droid (AI（アイ）高感度センサー搭載　メイドロイド).[8] Cinema Epoch released Maid-Droid on DVD in the US through its Tokyo Erotique series on December 22, 2009.[4][9]

References
  1. 老人とラブドール　私が初潮になった時… (in Japanese). P.G. Web Site. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  2. Buchanan, Jason. "Maid-Droid: Plot synopsis". Allmovie. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  3. "MAID-DROID" (in German). www.molodezhnaja.ch. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  4. Ouellette, Kevin. "DVD release - Maid-Droid (Tokyo Erotique) available on 22 December 2009". nipponcinema.com. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  5. メイドロイド(2008) (in Japanese). allcinema.net. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  6. "2009年度ベストテン (Best 10 of 2009)" (in Japanese). P.G. Web Site. Retrieved 2010-03-25.
  7. 老人とラブドール　私が初潮になった時(邦画 ) (in Japanese). Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  8. "AI（アイ）高感度センサー搭載　メイドロイド" (in Japanese). allcinema.net. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  9. "Coming Soon: Maid-Droid". Cinema Epoch. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
Preceded by
Nakagawa Jun Kyōju no Inbina Hibi		 Pink Grand Prix Silver Prize
2009		 Succeeded by
To be announced
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