New to Japanese Cult cinemaAny recommendations to get me started?

[Elvenefris]

Just so you know today we got a new sticky thread in this section at the top of the page for the Greatest Samurai/Ninja movies and BlackLamaFaction has put together a great resource with over 200 films to start off with.

Thanks, checking it out.

[13 Cold Blooded Eagles]

Seek out Kihachi Okamoto's "Sword Of Doom" as well.

[Richie Freebird]

Well, thanks to these great recommendations I’ve now watched a fair few Samurai films, and I must say, I’ve fell more in love with the style of the Japanese directors than I ever did for the Hong Kong Kung-Fu flicks.

Could anyone give me a couple of recommendations for Yakuza films to search out? The biggest classics etc, to get me started on that genre too? Thanks again for everyone’s wonderful help in pointing me in the right directions for the movies suggested already.

Rich

[Takuma]

Could anyone give me a couple of recommendations for Yakuza films to search out? The biggest classics etc, to get me started on that genre too?

There's more than one breed of classic yakuza films...

1) Ninkyo yakuza films (chivalrous yakuza films) are teh first one. They were popular from mid 60's to early 70's. These film were set in historical eras and followed a yakuza protagonist from an honorable yakuza family (running a gambling house, defending the weak, etc.), usually on a crash course with a less honorable yakuza family who would exploit the weak and disregard the traditions and codes of honor. The typical themes in these films were duty vs. personal feelings, and friendship between men. These films are, hence, somewhat similar to John Woo's gangster films from the late 80's and early 90's, which also dealth with similar themes.

The three major stars of this genre were Ken Takakura (one of the most legendary Japanese screen actors of all time), Koji Tsuruta, and the queen of yakuza films, Junko Fuji. When Fuji announcement her retirement from the genre in 1972, the entire genre was considered to have reached its end.

It's a magnificent genre, with loads of classiness, but it's also very much genre cinema, with most of the films repeating the same patterns over and over again. This is one of the genre's charms, actually... The genre is basically courtesy of Toei studios... and sadly, never distributed in English speaking territories. You can either do like I do... get the official Japanese dvds (custom sub them if needed)... or rely on stinking bootlegs (which would be somewhat acceptable in this case, since no one is ever gonna release these films outside Japan).

Many of the series run long (up to 10 instalments), often with upwards quality trend. Since they were produced quick, but the same cast would usually return in sequels (in same or different roles) it usually took a few "rehersal entries" before the quality was reached.

Famous series include

- Red Peony Gambler

(the best films are

- Red Peony Gambler 3: Flower Cards Match (Hibotan bakuto: Hanafuda Shobu, 1969),

-Red Peony Gambler 5: Notorious Gambler (Hibotan bakuto: Tekkaba retsunden, 1969)*

-Red Peony Gambler 8: Execution of Duty (Hibotan bakuto: jingi tooshi masu, 1972))

- Brutal Tales of Chivalry

- (Brutal Tales of Chivalry 2 (Showa zankyo-den: Karajishi botan, 1966) is one of my favorite yakuza films of all time)

- Bakuchi uchi (Bakuchi-uchi: socho tobaku aka Big Time Gambling Boss,1968 is considered one of the all time greats. I have it, but I haven't watched it yet)

- Nihon kyokaku-den

* note: the bootleggers fucked up the series order... I think they are calling this one part 6 or something...

For an easy start, check out the first two Brutal Tales of Chivalry films. A good introduction.

2) Jitsuroku yakuza films followed the ninkyo genre in early 70's. The genre was lead by Kinji Fukasaku, whose 5 + 4 part epic Battles Without Honor and Humanity explains it all in its title. These ultra-realistic, hyper-violent film were set in post WWII Japan. While the old yakuza films were all about honor, these jitsuroku docu-drama films were all about corruption and betrayal - and often adapted from real events.

Again, the genre was dominated by Toei, with Kinji Fukasaku and Sadao Nakajima being their two top directors. Bunta Sugawara was the most important actor (he also played supporting parts in ninkyo yakuza films), followed by Hiroki Matsukata and Tetsuya Watari. Sonny Chiba also had several supporting roles in these films, such as the villain in Deadly Battle in Hiroshima, and a psychotic karate killer in Okinawa Yakuza War.

While Battles Without Honor and Humanity (5 films, followed by 4 New Battles Without Honor and Humanity films) are most famous, I would actually recommend starting with some slightly easier single films...

- Yakuza Graveyard (Yakuza no hakaba: Kuchinashi no hana (1976))

- Cops vs. Thugs (Kenkei tai soshiki boryoku) (1975)

- Violent Streets (Bôryoku gai (1974))

- Hokuriku Proxy War (Hokuriku dairi senso (1977)) (this one is my favorite)

- Graveyard of Honor (Jingi no hakaba (1975))

The genre lasted till late 70's and then kinda died off.. in the 80's we had a random yakuza film here and there, until V-Cinema (video productions) took over in the 90's. However, in the 90's we still have Takashi Miike and Takeshi Kitano's one man film factories. Especially Kitano's Sonatine is amazing... one of the greatest movies of the 90's...

Ninkyo yakuza...

(Boukyou komoriuta, Nihon jokyo-den : Kettô Midare-bana, Brutal Tales of Chivalry 2)

vs. Jitsuroku yakuza

(using strange keyboard, probably thrice as many typos as usual to be found, sorry)

[Takuma]

Of course, in addition we have random films by other studios... Nikkatsu fo example produced tons of trendy action, crime and youth films in the 60's, some of them falling in the yakuza genre.

While not exactly pure yakuza films, movies like A Colt is My Passport, Tokyo Drifter and, Detective Bureau 2-3: Go to Hell Bastards come highly recommened. Pale Flower, which I haven't seen, probably falls in this category, too.

Sidney Pollack's The Yakuza is a good one also... it falls somewhere between ninkyo and jitsuroku films, and explains many of the seminal concepts for viewers who are new to the genre. It was written by Pal Schrader, who knows his shit. If you google for it you should eb able to find Schrader's essay on (ninkyo) yakuza films online. It was written almost 40 years ago, but it's still one of the best English language bits about the genre.

Speaking of Schraders, be sure to check out one of the greatest Japanese cult films of the 70's, The Man Who Stole the Sun (1979), written by Paul's bro Leonard Schrader and directed by the legendary Kazuhiko Hasegawa. Pop star Kenji Sawada stars as a misfit high school teacher who breaks into a nuclear powerplant, steals plutonium, and starts building his own A-bomb...

[Tosh]

Fukasaku's 5 part movies is called the "Yakuza Papers" (correct me if I'm wrong but Battles without Honor or Humanity is the first film), and is a must see, I put it over the Godfather's 3 movies anyday.

Someone has this for sale in the marketplace, if not I'm sure you can pick it up pretty cheap on amazon.

[Richie Freebird]

Thank you for the brilliant posts Takuma, very helpful and informative. I’ll endeavour to search out all of the titles you have recommended me here.

Are there any other stone wall classics of Japanese cinema (of any genre) that you would suggest? I really appreciate the help given to me in this thread. I know very little about Japanese movies, other than the suggestions off here that I have tracked down and watched. I’ve invariably loved everything I’ve seen up to now, and am open to watching any true classics of pretty much any genre of Japanese film.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

I'll second both Sonatine and Tokyo Drifter (directed by Seijun Suzuki).

I'll recommend one of my favorites Youth of the Beast (1963: Seijun Suzuki) with one of my favorite Jô Shishido roles (heck I like most of Suzuki's Nikkatsu Studios work).

Tokyo Drifter has a rerelease from Criterion coming out Dec. 13 (also on blu-ray; also new interviews with Seijun Suzuki and assistant director Masami Kuzuu) as well as Suzuki's Branded to Kill is also getting a rerelease that day (also being released on BD;also a new interview with Joe Shishido).

[Tosh]

.

Are there any other stone wall classics of Japanese cinema (of any genre) that you would suggest?

Two that haven't been mentioned are Kwaidan, and Ugetsu.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

...While I'm a huge Yasujirō Ozu fan, I think I will push Kenji Mizoguchi as a director you should pursue later with such films as Ugetsu and Sansho the Bailiff. Both excellent period (jidai geki) pieces

Two that haven't been mentioned are Kwaidan, and Ugetsu.

Hee hee, I'll second Kwaidan as well.

[Tosh]

Hee hee, I'll second Kwaidan as well.

Sorry bro, I had to run out the door yesterday in the middle of that post:wink:

Also check out the Betrayal and then Shinobi No Mono movies for the most realistic ninja films ever.

Kwaidan is 4 ghost stories, Hoichi the earless being my favorite part with Woman of the Snow with a young Nakadai a close second.

And if you haven't seen Harakiri yet make it the next one on your list, my favorite movie period!

[jerryleahy]

well took the first guys advice and watched the first 2 wolf and cub and it is extreme with all the boobs but things need to be extreme to get the message across, we do need to remember were, what and who we are.. but it was sooo so good cant wait to watch the rest of them and then to come back to this thread and check out some more of peoples suggstions! definelty lots of gnarly stencil artwork comin from that movie.. cheers guys

[Takuma]

ok, in a more general scale: cool-ass JP stuff. Random personal picks

The Films of Sion Sono

Sion Sono is a living legend – he’s been a poet and film maker since his teens, and he made his international breakthrough with his Andy Warhol esque arthouse films in the early 90’s. He became an underground hero in the mid 90’s when he lead hundreds of people on the streets of Tokyo in a “guerilla poetry protest”. In the 2000’s he went exploitation-poetry-social with Suicide Club – a hugely entertaining but rarely understood dive into Japanese mentality, social pressure, and pop culture. It’s clever, it’s ultra-violent, and it’s harrowingly beautiful. The follow up, Noriko’s Dinner Table, follows a teenage girl's identity crisis. The film abandon’s shock values, but is much more personal (largely based on Sono’s own life) and almost as impressive as Suicide Club.

Sono’s true masterpiece is the four hour Love Exposure, which maybe the best Asian movie of the decade. Again drawing inspiration from Sono’s own experiences as a member of a religious cult, it’s an amazing genre cocktail following its young catholic protagonist who turns tosatsu (up-skirt photography) expert. From here the film becomes a love story… with plenty of up-skirts, churches, kung fu, samurai swords, gore… and one hell of a soundtrack.

In addition Sono has directed a ton of great and interesting films, such as his recent, pitch back serial killer thriller/comedy Cold Fish (based on true story) and a brilliant guerilla style New York film Hazard.

(from left: Hazard, Suicide Club, Love Exposure)

Crazy Thunder Road (1980) and August in the Water (1995)

Remember Tetsuo - The Iron Man? The Japanese all time cyber punk classic! Actually, Tetsuo was derivative of Sogo Ishii, THE Japanese punk maestro that inspired Tsukamoto, Miike, Kitano, and everyone. A punk musician turned film student Ishii made his first classic Crazy Thunder Road at the age of 23... it was his film school graduation work. And what a film! Ishii managed bigger action scenes than the major studios (the ending is an all out street war with machine guns, grenades and army vehicles) and invited all his punk artist friends to record one of the coolest movie soundtracks of all time. The outcome is a love song for rebellion, punk, and motorbikes. Takeshi Kitano's favorite film!

15 years later Ishii had entered the second phase of his career: the psychedelic years. August in the Water is a mind blowing new age film with amazing cinematography and use of sound. The film is set in Ishii's hometown Fukuoka where a heat wave and mysterious virus are turning people's organs into stone. One of my favorite movies of the 1990's.

(Ishii's films come in uneven pairs... while I love Crazy Thuder Road to death, but I hate his next punk manifesto Burst City. I also dislike his 1990's new age thriller Angel Dust, which was made just prior to August in the Water. Electric Dragon 80 000 V is ok, but over-rated.)

(from left: Crazy Thunder Road, Shuffle, August in the Water)

The works of Shinya Tsukamoto

Tsukamoto was the next Sogo Ishii, with films like the all time cyber punk classic Tetsuo - The Iron Man, the stunning boxing acid trip Tokyo Fist (imagine Fight Club, but more violent and hard hitting), and the visually striking psycho-sexual drama/thriller A Snake of June. An easier but equally impressive work is Vital, with Tadanobu Asano in the lead. And for those who can't get enough of Japanese cyber-punk there's Shozin Fukui, with films like Rubber's Lover and 964 Pinoccio, although this guys is very hard-core will make casual viewers shit their pants.

(from left: Tetsuo - The Iron Man, Tokyo Fist x 2)

The works of Shunji Iwai

There is no other modern Japanese director with as many masterpieces in his filmography as Shunji Iwai. Swallowtail Butterfly was the first one - a stunning genre cocktail mixing coming of age drama, yakuza action, social commentary, music, romance, and even horror. The main characters (prostitutes, musicians, assassins, doctors, all living in the slums outside Tokyo, and played by Japanese, Chinese and American actors...) are terrific, the film changes genre with incredible fluency, and features the best Frank Sinatra cover of all time. One of the most breathtaking movies out there.

... and Swallowtail Butterfly is not even Iwai's best film. His best film is the pure perfect romantic April Story, running just under 70 minutes. Minimal dialogue, minimal writing, this is just pure audio-visual beauty. And then there's his best known masterpiece All About Lily Chou Chou - an incredibly real drama following Japanese kids "growing up absurd in Japan's pervasive pop/cyber culture" (imdb), with some of the most beautiful digital cinematography of all time. The Okinawa episode is amazing.

In addition, Iwai has directed a load of other recommendable films, such as Picnic (in which three mental patients head for their last trip before the end of the world), Hana and Alice (just a sweet youth film with lovely performances by Yu Aoi and Anne Suzuki), and his romantic breakthrough film Love Letter, set in the snowy Hokkaido town Otaru (a nostalgic movie for me, as I have lived in that town). From Iwai's early works Fireworks, Should We See It from the Side or the Bottom? and Geshi monogatari are also great.

(from left: All About Lily Chou Chou, Swallowtail Butterfly, Picnic)

[hkpyanfar]

I'd like to give a disclaimer before my recommendations. I have watched and liked Kurosawa, Zaitoichi, and Wolf and Cub, but in general, I don't watch much Japanese cinema.

But.........if you think you might be interested in a cross-over between the Giant Monster and samurai genres, the Daimajin trilogy might interest you. I enjoyed them, but others here might be better qualified to let know how well this fits in with your interests.

For me, I'd love to have a Daimajin hanging around the house!

[waywardsage]

I'm a huge fan of Japanese films. I agree with the listing of:

Lone Wolf & Cub

All the Zatoichi films, (they just get better as the series goes on. The first few are a bit slow)

Yojimbo and Sanjuro, (two of my personal favorites! I personally enjoy them more than 7 Samurai)

Hara Kiri, (One of the greatest films ever made!)

Goyokin, (My personal favorite Samurai film. No matter how many others I see, I keep coming back to this as a personal bench mark!)

Samurai Rebellion, Samurai Spy, Kill!, Sword of the Beast (All available in a Criterion boxed set that is amazing!)

Sleepy Eyes of Death series, (I've heard it said that if Zatoichi is a stray dog, Neyomi in Sleepy Eyes is like a sly cat!)

You can pretty much watch any film by Hideo Goesha and count on it being amazing! I haven't seen a bad one yet. Problem is, a lot of his films are hard to find in the US.

As for outside Samurai films, I really enjoy the films of Sonny Chiba. If you dig Kung Fu, you'll dig High Karate with Chibasan!

I really enjoyed the Karate trilogy with him!

[waywardsage]

Sorry bro, I had to run out the door yesterday in the middle of that post:wink:

Also check out the Betrayal and then Shinobi No Mono movies for the most realistic ninja films ever.

Kwaidan is 4 ghost stories, Hoichi the earless being my favorite part with Woman of the Snow with a young Nakadai a close second.

And if you haven't seen Harakiri yet make it the next one on your list, my favorite movie period!

I have the Animeigo Shinobi No Mono set. It's great! A totally different take on the Samurai film from a completely different angle. Highly recommended.