John Hughes meets John Wick, and you add a dash of Bring it On, and you get deranged and entertaining Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards. Playing at Fantasia Film Festival 2025.
Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards is the kind of constantly evolving film that revels in the surprises in store for its audience. What could have been a one note film is anything but. Not just a showcase for the unique comedic talent of star Raul Murakami but an ensemble piece that highlights over a dozen young actors. Director Jun’ichi Ishikawa and writer Hiroyuki Yatsu make all the adroit choices in adapting Masamitsu Nigastu manga series.
High Schooler Arakuni Ibuki is tasked by his Yakuza boss to watch over his daughter Honeko Akabane – who happens to be Arakuni’s crush. The only catch is that Honeko does know her father and doesn’t know she’s being protected from assassin attempting to cash in on a $100 million bounty. Arakuni though isn’t the only one with this task and quickly finds out he is a part of a interconnected team with special set of skills. Arakuni gets more than he bargins for as he finds out its just single assassins but an entire rival clan of Yakuza that he must contend with along with his new team.
Part of the delight of this action comedy set high school film is how it manages to weave the troupes of both well-worn genres to create something refreshing that always manages to swerve in an unexpected direction. It isn’t just Arakuni and Honeko and their romance that takes up screentime. The film manages to give each of its over dozen supporting characters their own storyline and arcs that are genuinely rewarding and pay off in winning and sometimes surprising fashion. The film alternates expertly between its high school comedy and Yakuza action film with the same skill and style that few films can handle one of these genres.
To reveal more of this would be to ruin some of the truly devilishly fun in a film that sets its action heavy finale during a high school dance competition.