Zebraman

Zebraman (2004) is Takashi Miike's superhero action-comedy, available to watch online on iFILM. Shinichi Ichikawa is a worn-down schoolteacher — mocked by his students, ignored by his own family, drifting through a life that bores him stiff.

His one escape is a childhood obsession: an old TV show about a hero called Zebraman that got axed after just six episodes. Shinichi stitches together a black-and-white striped costume and starts prowling the streets at night in it. Then things turn strange. The suit seems to come alive, the sad-sack fan becomes an actual protector, and he ends up as the one thing standing between his town and an invasion of alien green goo. Miike, better known for far harsher work, plays this one warm and almost family-friendly, though his taste for the absurd never fully leaves.

Written by Kankuro Kudo and headlined by Show Aikawa, it works as both a fond send-up of the tokusatsu genre and a story about a grown man reclaiming a kid's dream. It's a treat for fans of Japanese oddball cinema with a soft center and anyone who loves retro superhero camp. Stream Zebraman (2004) online on iFILM.