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First Love
Movie

First Love

2019 • Unknown

Woke Score
1
out of 10

Plot

One night in Tokyo, Leo, a young boxer, meets his first love, Monica, an imprisoned sex worker. Caught up in a drug-smuggling scheme, they find themselves pursued by a corrupt cop, a yakuza, his nemesis, and a female assassin.

Overall Series Review

First Love is a hyper-violent, romantic crime thriller set in Tokyo’s criminal underworld, focused on a boxer facing a terminal illness and a traumatized sex worker on the run. The narrative is a frenetic, character-driven race against a bumbling yakuza, a corrupt cop, and a maniacal female assassin over a bag of stolen drugs. The core theme is the revitalizing power of 'first love' and the instinct to protect, giving a sense of purpose to a life previously devoid of meaning. It uses classic genre tropes—the damsel in distress and the reluctant hero—to deliver non-stop action and dark comedy. The film is a pure genre exercise, offering a universal message of human connection and redemption amidst chaos, with no time or room for political commentary.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

The casting is entirely authentic to the Japanese setting and characters, featuring Japanese Yakuza and Chinese Triads as rival criminal gangs. The conflict is based on territory and greed, not a lecture on systemic oppression or an intersectional hierarchy. Characters are judged solely by their merit as villains, heroes, or comic relief within a pulpy crime context.

Oikophobia1/10

The film focuses on the dark underbelly of Tokyo crime, depicting corruption among yakuza and police. This is a critique of criminal elements, not a condemnation of Japanese culture, civilization, or heritage. The theme is about personal salvation and finding meaning, not civilizational self-hatred. Foreigners (Chinese Triads) are depicted as rival criminals, not spiritually superior figures.

Feminism2/10

The female protagonist, Monica, is a victim of abuse, trafficking, and addiction who is saved by the protective instinct of the male lead, Leo. This dynamic is a traditional complementary pairing. The villainous female assassin, Julie, is violent and unhinged, motivated by personal revenge, and is not presented as an aspirational 'Girl Boss' figure. Masculinity is celebrated as a protective force.

LGBTQ+1/10

The core of the story is the classic heterosexual romance between Leo and Monica. The narrative contains no elements of centering alternative sexualities, deconstructing the traditional family unit, or promoting gender ideology. Sexuality is incidental to the action-crime plot and follows a normative structure.

Anti-Theism1/10

The film is a fast-paced action-crime story focused on betrayal, love, and fate. It contains no discussion or vilification of traditional religion, specifically Christianity. Morality is framed by the protagonists’ choice to protect one another, asserting a basic objective good against the pervasive evil and nihilism of the criminal world.