So this is the movie that first called the cinematic genius of Mr. Pyun to my attention, although as it turned out I had seen several of his films without ever attributing them to Mr. Pyun.

The video cassette box called to me thanks to a scantily clad muscular woman pictured against a mysterious background with the title “Cry of Angels” emblazoned across the bottom. I knew right away that I had to see this film. The fact that I hadn’t heard of it, the fact that the description on back of the box gave me no clue as to the content of the film, the fact that the video store clerk warned me against this purchase, none of that mattered. I felt a need to see this film based on the cover alone.

This is a film of questions for me, as every aspect of this film screams “Why would they?” or “What the?”.  Popping in the cassette the questions began for me immediately.  As the video started to roll on my copy of  “Cry of Angels” I immediately became aggravated when the title Nemesis 4 appeared. Did the clerk in the store give me the wrong tape? How was I going to see “Cry of Angels” now? That image on the box, it called to me, yet was I going to be denied? As it turned out relief came soon enough when the striking visage of Sue Price made herself known and I was able to reconcile her personage with the image on the box. “Nemesis 4” and “Cry of Angels” were indeed the same movie, I was safe.

Immediately I knew this was my type of movie when the first scene had impressive body builder Sue Price kill a mobster with nettles popping out of her nipples. It’s probably worth saying if nudity offends you this is not the movie for you. Sue Price is topless the entire movie. I mean not just a gratuitous scene here and there, but THE ENTIRE MOVIE! The strange thing about the nudity is that it’s entirely unnecessary. This is an action film, and usually in an action film nudity is inserted in to pauses in the action but in this film it’s in every scene. It’s even stranger when you consider that that the majority of the movie takes place outdoors, and stranger still when you realize that there is no scene in this movie where that nudity would have been appropriate. It’s as if they were shooting an action movie and the star of the film simply forgot her shirt. I don’t think that it’s even really addressed after the initial disrobing scene, she’s just nude after that and none of the supporting players ever really even seem to notice.

The story is pretty indecipherable, making no real sense in any conventional way. Of course that doesn’t hamper the movie much since the visuals entertain without the need to really understand the complexities of the plot.  A nude Cyborg with a big gun kills a nun/angel/assassin- so anyone attempting to understand the back-story leading to this scene may be asking too much of this movie. Violence and nudity are what this movie offers in abundance. Anything else is pushed to the side.

I said this movie for me is about questions and those questions continue even after the movie ends. Since I enjoyed this cinematic gem I went back and watched the rest of the Nemesis series. Nemesis 2 and 3 (the only ones also staring Sue Price) contain no nudity, so why was it felt that the gratuitous nudity was so important for the fourth installment? Why was this movie originally released under a different title? Why is it only 61 minutes? Are there missing scenes that would make the story make sense?  Why has Nemesis 4 been released on DVD with it’s proper title “Nemesis 4” and yet 2 and 3 remain unreleased?

All these and more are the questions responsible for having lead me to a fascination with Albert Pyun and his work that may just be, unfortunately, unhealthy.

But hey, at least I got gratuitous nudity