This movie begins with a beautiful woman named "Ran" (Kaori Shimamura) stealthily wading ashore from a small boat onto the beach of Ishigaki Island which is a small island that is located near Taiwan but belongs to Japan. Not long afterward Ran enters a restaurant and shoots the leader of the Taiseikai faction of the Yakuza, along with a couple of his bodyguards, and then departs the establishment in great haste. Although only slightly wounded, in order to avoid being caught by members of the police or the Yakuza she takes shelter in a bar owned by a man named "Yoichi Fujinami" (Takeshi Yamato) who just happens to be closing for the night. He notices that Ran is injured and after treating her wounds allows her to stay for the night. It soon becomes known that Ran is an assassin from Hong Kong who is known as "the Black Orchid" and that she isn't quite finished with her mission. Yoichi, on the other hand, is a former member of the Yakuza who has broken off his relationship with them but still retains a close friendship with the man named "Yaguichi" (Takanori Kikuchi) who was the second-in-command of the Taiseikai group and needs to capture or kill Ran as a matter of principle. To further complicate matters, Ran's next assignment is to assassinate the leader of the island's Taiwan mafia who goes by the name of "Ho" (Hakuryu). But with the police, the Taiwan mafia and the Yakuza looking for her this won't be easy by any means. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this turned out to be a pretty good movie in the "xx Beautiful series". One particular difference is that, although it has a couple of scenes of a sexual nature, the film itself isn't quite as brutal or graphic as some of the others and that actually works to its advantage. Likewise, having an attractive actress like Kaori Shimamura certainly didn't hurt either. In any case, I found the movie to be quite entertaining and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Above average.
Review of XX: Beautiful Beast
