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After his gang disbands, a yakuza enforcer looks forward to life outside of organized crime but soon must become a drifter after his old rivals attempt to assassinate him. (NR, 82 min.)
(TBD)
Japanese New Wave series @ The Moxie
Free for Members
In this jazzy gangster film, reformed killer Tetsu’s attempt to go straight is thwarted when his former cohorts call him back to Tokyo to help battle a rival gang. Director Seijun Suzuki’s onslaught of stylized violence and trippy colors is equal parts Russ Meyer, Samuel Fuller, and Nagisa Oshima—an anything-goes, in-your-face rampage. Tokyo Drifter is a delirious highlight of the brilliantly excessive Japanese cinema of the sixties. [Janus]
Starring: Tetsuya Watari, Chieko Matsubara, Hideaki Nitani
Director: Seijun Suzuki
Language: Japanese
Genre: Action, Crime
"Distills the aesthetic of the 1960s into one feature-length blast."
— Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy
"Delirious mix of musical and gangster film has spectacular design and color."
— Michael E. Grost, Classic Film and Television
"A unique and significant voice in the history of cinema that deserves much more love."
— Kanishk Devgan, Film Companion
"Seijun Suzuki’s gangster movie masterpiece... recreates the Yakuza genre as a pop-art James Bond cartoon as directed by Jean-Luc Godard."
— Sean Axmaker, Stream on Demand
"Imagine what a yakuza thriller might look like if it were codirected by Jean-Luc Godard and John Woo, adding a little Sergio Leone and Jean-Pierre Melville, then multiplied by 10."
— TV Guide
"It's a veritable pop-art extravaganza, complete with James Bond flare, Vincente Minnelli-esque musical numbers, a Western-inspired saloon straight out of Pioneertown."
— Kathleen Sachs, Cine-File
"A technicolor explosion of style akin to the Pop Art of the era, Suzuki and [art director] Kimura employ color in bold and unique ways, one sparkling cinemascope frame followed by another. "A man's life bleeds away in crimson colors," we're told. In this film, it does so, remarkably."
— Stela Jelincic, Fandor
