is a 1981 Japanese

yakuza film is a popular film genre in Japanese cinema which focuses on the lives and dealings of ''yakuza'', Japanese organized crime syndicates. In the silent film era, depictions of ''bakuto'' (precursors to modern yakuza) as sympathetic Robin Hood-li ...

directed by

Shinji Sōmai was a Japanese film director. He directed 13 films between 1980 and 2000. Career and style His film '' Moving'' was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. His 1998 film, '' Wait and See'', won the FIPRESCI ...

, starring

Japanese idol An is a type of entertainer marketed for image, attractiveness, and personality in Japanese pop culture. Idols are primarily singers with training in acting, dancing, and modeling. Idols are commercialized through merchandise and endorsements b ...

Hiroko Yakushimaru is a common feminine Japanese given name. Name meanings Hiroko can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *裕子, "kind child" *弘子, "Beautiful child" *寛子, " small child" *浩子, "large child" *博子, "wise child" *� ...

as the main character and based on the novel of the same name by Jirō Akagawa. It was released on 19 December 1981. A

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...

take on

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

films, the storyline involves a teenage delinquent schoolgirl named Izumi Hoshi who inherits her father's yakuza clan. The title is a reference to a scene where the main character shoots several rival gang members with a

submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...

, while wearing a sailor-fuku, the traditional

Japanese school uniform The Japanese school uniform is modeled in appearance similar to that of the European-style naval uniforms. It was first used in Japan in the late 19th century, replacing the traditional kimono. Today, school uniforms are common in many of the J ...

. ''Sailor Suit and Machine Gun'' is relatively well known in its home country, and spawned two television series based on and expanding upon its story, one in 1982, and one in 2006. Outside Japan, it is popular in some

cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage ...

circles, but has not garnered much mainstream attention. It has been released on Region 2 and Region 3

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

, the latter being its first release that featured English

subtitles Subtitles and captions are lines of dialogue or other text displayed at the bottom of the screen in films, television programs, video games or other visual media. They can be transcriptions of the screenplay, translations of it, or informati ...

. A "spiritual

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

", '' Sailor Suit and Machine Gun: Graduation'', was released on March 5, 2016.

Cast

Reception

The

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...

of the film, " Sailor Fuku to Kikanjū", sung by the lead actress,

, stayed at the 1st place of the weekly

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...

for five consecutive weeks, from December 21, 1981 (issue date) to January 18, 1982 (issue date).

Box office

The film was released in a double bill with '' Moeru yūsha'' on 19 December 1981. Distribution income for the bill reached number one on the domestic market for the period including 1982, reaching ¥2.3 billion in distribution income, and totaling in gross revenue.

Accolades

It was chosen as the 10th best film at the 4th Yokohama Film Festival.

References

External links

* {{Shinji Sōmai Films directed by Shinji Sōmai Films based on Japanese novels Yakuza films Toei Company films Japanese LGBT-related films 1980s Japanese films ja:セーラー服と機関銃#映画