COSP-009: Layer Production vol. 2

Actress: Ikana Utate (?)
Studio: Spice Visual

Release Date: 2011-04-28
Runtime: 90 Minutes

6.1/10

Introduction

The cosplay sub-label under Spice Visual was a series of cosplay focused non-nude IVs that ran from 2015 to 2017. The actresses featured within this label appear to have not been very popular outside this niche as I have yet to find other works by them, either in Gravure or JAV. Ikana herself has performed in 2 of the 16 releases, the movie reviewed being the second release. Non-nude IVs have to be looked at from a slightly different perspective as the lack of nudity does affect the overall impact of a shoot, however, given that these films are cosplay oriented, ideally the outfits are going to compensate in some capacity for the lack of nudity. Let’s see how it fares.

Production & Setting

This release skips the usual IV opening montage and gets straight to the point. We start off with Ikana wearing a pink and white maid outfit and a blonde whig, pretty standard fare for cosplay really. The scene is well shot, brightly lit thanks to the window backdrop, and despite it raining outside, the scene doesn’t appear muted (unless that is fake rain and therefore the clouds aren’t getting in the way of the sun). The music is casual as Ikana poses in a variety of ways. The music tempo picks up as the poses become more revealing in nature but the most they provide are panty shows and generally not up close. This is clearly meant to show off the outfit itself and not entirely to do with sexual implications, at least not fully. 
 
From here we move on to the quintessential bathroom scene. We get a nice jazz track that sets a good pace and Ikana is now in a fully white bikini with an entirely different hair style and color (her natural hair in this case). This scene is also well lit, perhaps a bit too bright with everything basically white, but that does draw you in to watching Ikana’s face as her hair is the only contrasting element to the scene. The scene progresses to the shower component and while Ikana is playing in the water to a slower tempo keyboard beat and is rinsing herself, you do get a slight reveal of some nipples through the clothing, but it’s thick enough to never really show anything. A few variations in music and camera angles do provide some nice shots of Ikana and her outfit, but it’s nothing amazing since the outfit alone is pretty basic.
The third scene we come to see Ikana in one of the go to locations for Gravure films. If you have watched enough tropical themed films, the geography is unmistakable. This scene features an upbeat track, Ikana in a pink whig and small white bikini. She goes through the usual poses on the rocks and playing in the water, with some more up close butt shots once she gets down to sitting on the sand. Visually the scene is fine, it’s not the greatest use of the backdrop but it works, again, the focus is the outfit so that does detract somewhat from the overall picture. From there, its another small bikini, a different colored whig, and some added thigh high socks. These outfits are par for the course which is to be expected, it’s just they seem a little boring by comparison to less stereotypical anime-like cosplay outfits. The scene is fine, music works with the slower glamour oriented pace, and we get a bit more revealing as Ikana shows off more of her butt (this outfit and pose heavily reminds me of the coppertone sunscreen ad). 
 
The remaining three scenes are a mixed bag of themes as well. The third last is set outside the building used in the shoot. This outfit is certainly the most complex and the scene is complimented by an upbeat track, however, much like prior scenes, the effort being made by the camera crew and Ikana appears fairly average at best, more along the lines of either modelling the clothing or the fan service than the actual artistic presentation of the elements combined. However, there are some nice shots. The penultimate scene is a better backdrop than some of the prior rooms but its still fairly routine. The outfit is essentially the same as in the fourth scene but just a different color. Nice lighting, but overall a somewhat boring scene. The last one features Ikana without a whig, on the beach, doing shots in the water. Production wise this is definitely the best out of the other shoots. Ikana also appears more interactive and energetic in it, but the water may have something to do with that. The outfit as well is nice, more realistic so less cosplay focused, and it really suits the backdrop and Ikana’s natural looks. Had they done the film with scenes like this, it would have been better.
 
Score: 6/10 (Production), 6/10 (Setting)

Music

Overall the music was actually decent in contrast to much of the film. The styles never went off base with what was presented on the screen and the tempo changes worked during mid scene transitions. To start off in the first shoot we get a slower tempo piece that has a hint of a faster pace to it. It serves as a nice introduction beat while they showcase Ikana and her pink maid like outfit. The beat switches once the shoot moves to a closer panning of Ikana and it takes a deeper bass with a bit more of a jazzy feel, likely trying to reinforce a more playful intimate image, although it falls a bit short when combined with the other elements, but it does alright. The second scene is the shower shoot. This shoot does quite a few up close shots and the beat retains its jazzy casual feel to it. There is a small addition of a guitar solo during more intimate portions but it’s gone fairly quickly. The second half of this shoot slows the tempo more but remains light hearted as it is the washing section so the scene is supposed to be more energetic, and for the most part it works.

The following beach scene is split into the typical two parts based on the intimacy level, the first part is energetic, sounds very 90s. The second half certainly sounds more 90s retro 32-bit with the background keyboard. The track has a little too much going on and is a little too upbeat for what is being presented by Ikana and the camera movements. The remaining scenes are somewhat similar in this style, they have a more upbeat mid to fast paced track to start and then slow it down for the more intimate portions of the shoot. However some, like the first shoot right after the beach does get quite complex musically and had the visual portion of the scene been just as dynamic, it would have been a perfect fit. The 2nd to last outdoor shot is upbeat with some guitar work, again, it works well enough but fails to match what is on the screen. All in all, the music worked and it stuck to a transition pattern that wasn’t poorly timed, it’s just that visually the music rarely fit in and that is largely the fault of the production and direction of the shoots.

Score: 6.5/10

Aesthetics & Performance

Ikana’s performance unfortunately was fairly average (and not within the context of average Gravure performances). Lack of enthusiasm most of the time made the scenes appear more focused on the clothing and less on the person. Ikana appears best at the last scene where she looks to be having fun with the shoot in the water, granted the water itself could be encouraging this reaction. The rest of the scenes largely consist of a more muted glamour-esque performance. Slower movements, minimal facial expressions save for a few moments here and there. Limited interaction with her clothing and her environment overall, even during the more nude portions, but I believe this is more to do with the direction of the production team and less so about Ikana herself. All in all it’s just a bit boring to watch.

The set pieces could have been fairly decent had there been more work done between the camera man, Ikana, and the outfits, but because nudity wasn’t included and that the outfits were largely stereotypical designs or copies of prior scenes, it just doesn’t produce much of a reaction from a viewer standpoint. Ikana’s best outfits and appearance were when she was not cosplaying as anything. Her natural hair color and the backdrops used were on point and had the film been done in this manner and less cosplay oriented then it very well could have been a better film. The initial room and the exterior beach scenes were aesthetically the better of the shots (outfits aside), while the interiors, while not unexpected even in higher quality productions, just went underutilized in terms of visual capacity in part from the outfit choices and Ikana’s direction.

Score: 6/10 (Aesthetics), 6/10 (Performance)

Summary

This was the first non-nude IV release I have reviewed, in addition to being the first entry into this cosplay sub-label from Gravure veterans Spice Visual. In short, the film is a let down on a variety of fronts. Production wise the film doesn’t look bad but it is uninspired. The performance both due to the intent and direction of the film and from Ikana makes the film appear more like it’s selling the clothing visually and not the person behind it. It appears to pander too much to fan service with stereotypical uninspired (and often reused) outfits. The film’s production quality isn’t bad and the music choices and pacing actually works well. In addition, in the couple shoots where Ikana was not cosplaying and had her natural appearance, her performance and aesthetic portrayal stepped up in terms of quality. Ikana looked at her best in the final scene and the film would have likely been better had it dropped the cosplay concept and stuck to standard Gravure themes (although this is the second release from Ikana by the same label. 

All in all, this film did not do a great job as a non-nude IV due to the clothing choices, and unless you are literally looking for a live action version of your maid cafe waifu, this film doesn’t really check many boxes (and it’s a stretch to say it does anything substantial in the fanservice department as well, but who knows when it comes to those fans).

 
Score: 6.1/10
Pros

– Pacing of the scenes/music was alright
– Film quality was at least average

Cons

– Uninspired outfits/recycling
– Performance was pretty boring