What Asian Films Have You Been Watching Recently?

[AngelGuts]

Thanks for the poster art and screen captures, Takuma.

[Takuma]

I did mis-read it. :-( Thanks for clarifying. Can't find art/poster for the film you saw. Very obscure. But if it's on Neco, there's now something close to a ProRes HD file of it.

On a Facebook post linked to Neco, this appears:

実Director Nishu 江崎Confession of a Demon: The End of Sexual Lust 池Cineroman Ikebukuro

Pink movie made by Nikkatsu before Roman Porno.
Just like the "Sakyo" photo taken before the main work, many pink film actresses appeared.
The previous work only produced tears, but the current work also provided a hiding place and the pink film quality has increased.

It's a pink movie with a lot of hiding places, but the content mainly depicts the frustration of a black half young man who has been discriminated against from a Japanese young man who has lived in unfortunate circumstances. One of the flaws in the repertoire of daily life movies, and therefore, raping a woman is the cause of frustration from sexual desire.


Is this an alternate title? Looks to be the same film based on Japanese characters.

A very kind Japanese film scholar (紅藤 マイトZ) wrote me this re: the film:

"As you asked, the director of this movie is Minoo Ezaki. However, this movie "Confession of a Sex Devil: The End of Lust" is not a series, but only this work."

I can't really tell from the machine translated title. I'd need to see the original post.

Nikkatsu disagrees about this being a stand alone film. They consider it part 2 of a series. Could be mistake, though.
https://www.nikkatsu.com/movie/21081.html

Mio Ezaki is the correct spelling of the director's name.

Here's the theatrical poster.


And a few HD screencaps

[AngelGuts]

I did mis-read it. :-( Thanks for clarifying. Can't find art/poster for the film you saw. Very obscure. But if it's on Neco, there's now something close to a ProRes HD file of it.

On a Facebook post linked to Neco, this appears:

実Director Nishu 江崎Confession of a Demon: The End of Sexual Lust 池Cineroman Ikebukuro

Pink movie made by Nikkatsu before Roman Porno.
Just like the "Sakyo" photo taken before the main work, many pink film actresses appeared.
The previous work only produced tears, but the current work also provided a hiding place and the pink film quality has increased.

It's a pink movie with a lot of hiding places, but the content mainly depicts the frustration of a black half young man who has been discriminated against from a Japanese young man who has lived in unfortunate circumstances. One of the flaws in the repertoire of daily life movies, and therefore, raping a woman is the cause of frustration from sexual desire.


Is this an alternate title? Looks to be the same film based on Japanese characters.

A very kind Japanese film scholar (紅藤 マイトZ) wrote me this re: the film:

"As you asked, the director of this movie is Minoo Ezaki. However, this movie "Confession of a Sex Devil: The End of Lust" is not a series, but only this work."

[Takuma]

Thanks for the Neco correction.

Seems CONFESSION OF A LOVELACE is a different film to TOKYO BATH HAREM... from your stills, it's not even a period film, but TOKYO BATH HAREM is.

So not sure there is a poster out there of it.

Yeah, I think you misread my original post. CONFESSION OF A LOVELACE is part 2 in a series, and I was just trying to figure out what is part 1. I think TOKYO BATH HAREM is part 1 (same producer, made a bit earlier).

[AngelGuts]

Thanks for the Neco correction.

Seems CONFESSION OF A LOVELACE is a different film to TOKYO BATH HAREM... from your stills, it's not even a period film, but TOKYO BATH HAREM is.

So not sure there is a poster out there of it.

[Takuma]

Caught it on Nihon eiga senmon channel. No stream or physical release as far as I know.

This may be irrelevant, but it was Neco, not Nihon eiga senmon channel. I don't know why I was thinking of the latter.

[Takuma]

CONFESSION OF A LOVELACE... aka TOKYO BATH is definitely SADISTIC VIOLENCE TO 10 VIRGINS as that poster is out there.

Now determined to see this after your 4/5 review. You caught it on Nikkatsu Channel? Any physical copy out there? Not finding on amazon.co.jp.

Caught it on Nihon eiga senmon channel. No stream or physical release as far as I know.

[AngelGuts]

CONFESSION OF A LOVELACE... aka TOKYO BATH is definitely SADISTIC VIOLENCE TO 10 VIRGINS as that poster is out there.

Now determined to see this after your 4/5 review. You caught it on Nikkatsu Channel? Any physical copy out there? Not finding on amazon.co.jp.

AKA's...

• Das Badehaus zu den 7 Glückseligkeiten
• Seitsemän onnen kylpylä
• The House of Strange Loves
• Tokyo Bath Harem
• Violenza sadica per 10 vergini
• おんなうきよぶろ

[Takuma]

Young Wolf (aka Hidden Fangs) (若い狼) (Japan, 1961) [35mm] - 3/5
Hideo Onchi’s stylish directorial debut, a semi-documentary style drama about young man Yosuke Natsuki trying to go straight after being released from youth prison. To his dismay, girlfriend Yuriko Hoshi waiting in Tokyo has followed in his footsteps, now complete with an attitude and a delinquent girl hairstyle. This is a solid film with beautifully captured and authentic looking black & white street cinematography. It is however only borderline delinquent youth film, following its protagonist's attempts to steer away from the yakuza world and resisting the temptation to let it all explode in violent mayhem. It hence gets more low key as it goes on. The recently deceased Kunie Tanaka appears in a supporting role as fellow inmate released at the same time as the protagonist.



Prison Gambler (監獄博徒) (Japan, 1964) [TV] – 2/5
Part 2 in the Gambler series, set almost entirely in Miike Prison (also the setting for director Ozawa and star Tsuruta's 1973 film Three Lakes Prison). The storyline is standard fluff, but the film's setting is quite unusual, especially for a film made in 1964. While many ninkyo films included prison segments, few made it their primary setting aside some films in the Abashiri Prison series that started in 1965. There are a few other points of interest, from prison brutality to tiny outdoor humiliation cages, the sun setting behind the prison walls and the prisoner forced to work at a coal mine, sweaty and half naked. It is curious how this film, alongside the opening segments in Teruo Ishii's The Shogun's Vault (1963), pre-dated the later women in prison films in terms of more than a few elements and visual details. It is not enough to save an otherwise uninspired ninkyo picture, however.

Escape Man (脱獄者) (Japan, 1967) [35mm] - 3.5/5
Kazuo Ikehiro tackles modern day crime thriller in an uneven, but highly rewarding Daiei noir. Tetsuro Tamba is a police detective with a little brother Jun Fujimaki in the yakuza. Tamba eventually gets framed and jailed for being too close to the gang - though despite the film's title this doesn't happen until the second half. And here lies the film's unevenness. The opening half is stylish, but not particularly convincing (two gangs gathering for a 5 vs. 5 quickdraw death duel being an example of both) or always engaging. However, once Tamba is behind bars, the film goes into highly suspenseful observative mode as he desperately tries to find a weak spot in the prison security while also keeping himself alive till the action packed climax. The entire second half is first rate filmmaking and Tamba is expectedly good. Sniper assassin Kyosuke Machida, gangster Nobuo Kaneko and former chief Yoshi Kato all excel in supporting roles. Fine score and stylish black & white cinematography complete the package.



Confessions of a Lovelace: At Lust’s End (ある色魔の告白　色欲の果て) (Japan, 1968) [TV] - 4/5
An astonishing exploitation extravaganza about a lusty hothead (Takashi Fujiki) who goes seducing and conning women until one is left dead. He then finds himself on the run from the law, handcuffed to a violent, discriminated and mentally unstable half-Japanese man (Shohei Yamamoto in blackface). The two go on an incredible escape / rape frenzy through the countryside, making brief destructive stops at a guesthouse, golf court populated by gaijin women, and church. And of course they take turns bonding and punching each other in the face. Wow! This is cinematic anarchy, immoral celluloid garbage and the kind of cinema you're not supposed to enjoy. Take the guesthouse scene as an example: the escapees peek in from a window, and there’s a lesbian couple making love; they move on to the next window and witness a rape in progress; then they decide to join the fun. All this depravity was expertly helmed by Mio Ezaki, one of Nikkatsu's in-house directors here working for independent production house Aoyama Production and making sure the film is technically on par with any mainstream Nikkatsu gangster film. There’s really no other film to compare this to (that I’ve seen) than Yasuharu Hasebe's depraved action thriller Rape! 13th Hour (1977) which, despite its far more graphic nature, can't quite match the frenetic nature and 60s swing of this film.

Note that Nikkatsu’s website claims this is the 2nd film in the Nikkatsu honno series / route (日活本能路線), but there is no mention of what is part 1. It is not either one of the Confessions of a Girl films, which only premiered after this movie. My guess is it’s Tokyo Bath Harem aka Sadistic Violence to 10 Virgins aka Onna ukiyoburo (女浮世風呂) (1968), an earlier Aoyama Pro film made for Nikkatsu by the same producer.



Confession of a Girl: The Forbidden Fruit (ある少女の告白　禁断の果実) (Japan, 1968) [TV] - 3/5
A Nikkatsu youth film unrelated to Confessions of a Lovelace despite its similar title. This is a notably tamer in-house production, a youth film about the sexual awakening of teenage boys and girls. It's a solid drama spiced up with some exciting scenes, like the boys helping a prostitute escape from a yakuza run brothel, and slight sun tribe type elements although in a little different context. Meiko Kaji appears in a supporting role with a hairdo almost like an afro! Also notable for being Mitsuko Oka's screen debut, complete with a very brief topless scene at the end. Followed by one sequel.



Bondage Tattoo on Wet Skin (濡れた肌刺青を縛る) (Japan, 1982) [35mm] - 1/5
I felt obliged to watch this Mamoru Watanabe Shintoho film since it was screening in 35mm. I probably shouldn't have. A soldier (Shiro Shimomoto) comes home from war, only to find his sweetheart (Mai Hana) missing. She's actually in the attic, tied up on ropes and tattooed from ankles to neck, under intensive yakuza care. What's curious about this tale is that she's fully engaged in self-torture, tying herself up and even pulling herself up in the air on ropes by herself when there's no one to whip her. It's slightly spectacular to look at and supposedly adds a psychological layer to the sleaze. Meanwhile he proceeds to bang other women... a lot. Then there’s a bit of revenge at the end. I watched this back to back with Toei's Virgin Breaker Yuki and Nikkatsu's Red Vertigo, and it's painfully evident how much lower the production values and filmmaking quality are here. On a more subjective opinion, the same is true to the prettiness of the actresses. This may have been satisfactory to sleaze-hungry pink audiences, but the (very) occasional moments of cinematic interest and the entirely elementary yakuza aspect to the plot offer little comfort to others.

[Takuma]

Shogoro Nishimura x 3

Seishun no kaze (青春の風) (Japan, 1968) [VoD] – 3/5
One man Roman Porno factory Shogoro Nishimura made many movies about girls, but here he made one for the girls. This is one of his roughly dozen pre-porno mainstream films from the 60s (nearly all of which are better than almost any of his roman features), this isn't quite among his best, but still has certain cheerfulness personified by lead Sayuri Yoshinaga that makes it fun to watch. Yoshinaga is young woman who becomes a maid for an American family (of three gaijin actors who all speak surprisingly decent Japanese) while also (sort of) chasing sweetheart Mitsuo Hamada who is getting little too intimate with friend Yoko Yamamoto. Yes, this at least partially a romantic comedy, but above all it’s a girl film. There’s very little in terms of men (besides Hamada) in the film. Some of Yoshinaga's interactions with the gaijin family (timid mother, silly womanizing husband and a lonely kid) are pretty funny and, Yoshinaga (with a very common look here, as opposed to the screen beauty appearance you’d expect) is highly likeable.



The Blazing Continent (燃える大陸) (Japan, 1968) [VoD] – 3/5
Another breezy Shogoro Nishimura film from the years before he went pervert. Tetsuya Watari plays a painter who is dispatched to Australia for a work gig, then fall in love with Chieko Matsubara. She is however (about to be) engaged to Aussie man Masumi Okada. At one point Watari becomes hostage / getaway driver to short fuse kid Ken Sanders who had used a little too much force in defending his sister's honour. There's plenty going on in this stylish and entertaining film, to the extent it can't quite decide what it wants to be. It can also get a bit too travelogue in places, but not as bad as many other Japanese films shot in foreign locations. The biggest stumbling block here is the English dialogue. Watari does ok with short lines only, and Sanders doesn't have any command of the language (despite his name, he is of course Japanese). Conversely, the French born, internationally educated Okada speaks English effortlessly. Meiko Kaji appears for a few seconds as well. She had much bigger roles in two other, superior Nishimura films: Goodbye Mr. Tears (1966) and Burning Nature (1967).



Women's Cruel Double Suicide (残酷おんな情死) (Japan, 1970) [VoD] - 3/5
Shogoro Nishimura’s grimy, docudrama esque film about lesbian lovers in yakuza infested Shinjuku. A suicidal call girl (Annu Mari) and a temperamental gold-digger (Sanae Ohori) meet by chance and eventually decide they are better off without men. But the former’s yakuza guardian / boyfriend (Jiro Okazaki) and his gang disagree. This was the last film Nishimura did before Nikkatsu’s Roman Porno switchover in the following year. It coincidentally became a bit of a transitional work, a much gloomier and fleshier picture void of the breeze and colourful art direction of his 60s pictures. It's also worse acted and edited with some jarring cuts, making it feel more like an independent picture than a Nikkatsu film. But it has its own charm, from authentic Tokyo locations to smutty atmosphere and even a brief cult lesbian orgy scene where Ohori is made love by white-hooded Ku Klux Clan types. It’s an interesting picture, though ultimately less bizarre and more low-key than some of the above-mentioned plot points might suggest. Also known as “Midnight Virgin”.



Others x 4

Manji (卍) (Japan, 1983) [TV] - 1/5
Holy pretentiousness, Batman!

Memories of You (ラブ・ストーリーを君に) (Japan, 1988) [TV] – 2/5
A sappy idol film with a terminally ill 14 year old (cute Kumiko Goto) spending one last summer with her ex-tutor (heart-throb Toru Nakamura) she has a crush on. "A Love Story for You" reads the Japanese title, which pretty much summarizes it. Love, nostalgia and tears has been the formula for box office success in Japan for decades. But cinematically, one would expect more from director Shinichiro Sawai, whose earlier works include the excellent Tragedy of W with Hiroko Yakushimaru at Kadokawa. This film was made at Toei. But it's not just the studio that is different here: Tragedy of W was written by nihilist/misogynist/screenwriter extraordinaire Haruhiko Arai, while this obviously wasn't (Shoichi Maruyama is the guilty party). While it doesn’t quite descend to the deepest melodrama gutters, there really isn’t much going for it other than pretty landscapes and decent leading performances.

Knife (KNIFE-ナイフ-) (Japan, 1996) [TV] – 2.5/5
A female assassin loses her memory after a botched job in this rather passable DTV film. She escapes from captivity and is rescued by a dad & daughter combo who provide her a safe environment to ask "who am I?" (even from a ridiculously dated computer system where assassin profiles written in broken English are stored). This isn’t too bad a film. There's some action, some nudity, and a decent amount of 90s existentialism (think of poor man’s Mamoru Oshii) aided by an occasionally pretty musical score. The pacing is ok and the thematics just about keep you interested, even if nothing really stands out. Director Hidehiro Ito is probably best known for a handful of sleazy 80s Roman Porno films, such as Secretary Rope Discipline (1981) and Debauchery (1983).



Ghost Master (ゴーストマスター) (Japan, 2019) [TV] - 1.5/5
What is it with these modern kids who can't make a genre film without burying it under five layers of apologetic, self-ironic meta? Ghost Master is a potentially fun tale of a film crew in the middle of a shoot when the assistant director's horror script comes alive and starts slaughtering the crew. There are some great practical splatter effects. Less CGI than expected. Some fun jokes too (the Tarantino jab especially). Lots of references, particularly to Evil Dead and Tobe Hooper. And then we have characters commenting how dumb and unreal it all is, on behalf of viewers and filmmakers who sort of like it, but are embarrassed to admit it, hence trying to strike a balance between laughing at films and laughing with films. It gets progressively worse with more and more idiotic post-modern scenes to assure viewers it's really just a self-aware joke, and can be enjoyed without losing credibility in one’s social circles. And then there’s a typically (for modern Japanese cinema) drawn-out drama anti-climax. Unlike the similarly themed but sincere One Cut of the Dead, this is fundamentally spoiled goods by apologetic filmmakers too afraid to commit to their craft.

[Randy G]

Watched the R1 DVD of Rape! 13th Hour and it was a bit underwhelming. The infamous gay rape scene is certainly memorable but the rest of the film feels rote and uninspired compared to Rape! Jack the Ripper or Beautiful Girl Hunting. The print quality is also not great.

Surprised to find the recent release of Zoom Up: Murder Sites more to my taste. Nice modernist touches, surprisingly erotic in spots and a robust Sadian perversity.

[Takuma]

Police Department Story 12 (警視庁物語 深夜便一三〇列車) (Japan, 1960) [35mm] - 2.5/5
An average entry in the long running series. An unknown woman's body is discovered in a cargo train travelling between Tokyo to Osaka. Where was she killed, and did someone try to mislead the police by transporting the body? This entry’s main strength is expanding the scenery decent location work in both Tokyo and Osaka.

Police Department Story 13 (警視庁物語 血液型の秘密) (Japan, 1960) [TV] – 2/5
An exceptionally talkative entry with a rather nasty premise: a mother and a baby are found lying dead on a sidewalk. Relative newcomer director Masuichi Iizuka (he also helmed part 12, which was one of his first film on a career that did not last long) fails to pump much energy into the film, though it’s decently written and the bittersweet climax is quite good.

Police Department Story 14 (警視庁物語 聞き込み) (Japan, 1960) [TV] – 2.5/5
This entry has one of the more powerful openings in the series. An elderly woman walks into the police station to inquire about her missing little brother, of whom she is dependent on. The detectives find him in no time... in the file of dead bodies. The rest of the film follows their attempts to trace his movements and contacts prior to his death, uncovering a murder plot behind it. This is another not-bad entry with a tight 52 minute running time.

Police Department Story 15: Alibi (警視庁物語　不在証明) (Japan, 1961) [VoD] – 2.5/5
This is one of the more notable entries in the series for featuring Sonny Chiba in his first movie role. The film kicks off with the murder of a security guard in a major company. What follows is a relatively well made and stylishly filmed tale bogged down by a large amount of talking heads scenes in indoor locations. Chiba makes his silver screen debut by joining the detective team. He’s not bad, but his lack of experience and confidence shows when he’s surrounded by the series’ regular cast. He sometimes looks like he's waiting for his turn to speak. Chiba had priorly starred in the television series New Seven Color Mask (1960) where he actually fared better, perhaps due being surrounded by monsters and masked villains rather than a veteran cast of 14 earlier Police Department Story films.



Police Department Story 16: 15 Year Old Woman (警視庁物語　十五才の女) (Japan, 1961) [VoD] – 4/5
One of the best films in the series, and a notable improvement over the previous instalment even though they were almost certainly shot back-to-back by the same crew. Sonny Chiba returns to his co-starring role as one of the detectives inspecting the case of a 15 year old girl, whose dead body was discovered floating in a river. As usual, the film runs only one hour and doesn’t depart too far from the usual formula; however, it greatly benefits from frequent outdoor locations that were sometimes missing from the previous film. Throughout the film the detectives are engaged in more active investigation work on location rather than just questioning people indoors. The film also touches far more serious topics, such as child abuse and mental insanity, and even utilises Rashomon-like storytelling techniques to some extent. The last scene is especially haunting and echoes more talented filmmakers like Kurosawa. Oddly enough, Chiba has also greatly improved his acting with a far more confident performance, including a lot of small gestures he does even in shots were his character is only seen in the background.



Police Department Story 17: 12 Detectives (警視庁物語　十二人の刑事) (Japan, 1961) [VoD] – 2/5
An unusually long episode in the Police Department Story series, made by a different crew than the previous two films. At 88 minutes this runs a third longer than most of the other films. Unfortunately the extended running time has not translated into increased ambition. Instead, it feels like a direct adaptation of the written story, with few cinematic tricks thrown in. The storyline is bigger and thicker than before, but also lacking the melancholy and sensitive themes that made the previous film so interesting. It’s still a passable movie with nothing totally wrong about it, but hardly a memorable one. Sonny Chiba is again solid in his supporting role, but his character is given little to do and gets less screen time than before. This was the third and last time he appeared in the series which would still run for another 7 films without him.

Note: reviews for parts 12, 15-17 are slightly re-written versions of my old reviews. I didn’t re-watch the films. I just didn’t want to skip over them now that I’m reviewing all the others.

[Takuma]

Tales of Japan's Chivalrous Women: Chivalrous Geisha (日本女侠伝 侠客芸者) (Japan, 1969) [TV] - 3.5/5
Junko Fuji's second major yakuza film series alongside Red Peony Gambler (1968-1972). The series name is a derivative from Ken Takakura's Tales of Japanese Chivalry, but there is no connection other than this being another series focusing on "labourers" rather than gamblers. This opening film sees Fuji as a Kyushu geisha during a coal boom, which was bringing gangsters, businessmen and military figures into town. Takakura is a noble, modest man running a coal mine, rotten Kaneko is a merciless slave master after Takakura’s mountain, and then there are two runaway lovers whom Takakura and Fuji agree to shelter respectively. This is a good film with some solid drama and stylish costume play, even if Fuji has to leave the swordplay to Takakura. Her role is nevertheless good, and many of her quieter scenes with Ken are sublime. The same can't be said about the Kaneko's evil villain character, who is a mere plot tool void of any finesse. Note that the film is also known as Samurai Geisha, a nonsensical title considering she's obviously not a samurai.



Tales of Japan's Chivalrous Women: Brave Red Flower (日本女侠伝 真赤な度胸花) (Japan, 1970) [TV] - 4/5
Fuji is a common girl who travels to Hokkaido to inherit her father's horse market business, only to land in the middle of a “civilians vs. yakuza” conflict. The gangsters have been bribing and murdering their way towards market ownership, and the only person who could save the outvoted Fuji clan is missing man Takakura, who holds a grudge for Fuji's old man. This is an excellent, slightly atypical ninkyo film. Fuji does karate! Shoots people! Barely wears a kimono! And it’s all set in the beautiful Hokkaido wilderness, far from Toei's studio sets. But most importantly, the film fully utilized the kind of duty vs. humanity conflict between its main characters that had come to characterize the best ninkyo films in the Brutal Tales / Red Peony era. But not so much good without some bad: a needlessly conservative ending, a strangely underwhelming Masao Yagi score, and probably the worst bit of teary-eye acting (by a certain kid) in a Toei film until Yutaka Nakajima would set a new low in The Street Fighter (1974).



Tales of Japan's Chivalrous Women: Iron Geisha (日本女侠伝　鉄火芸者) (Japan, 1970) [TV] - 3/5
Pretty geisha Junko Fuji meets chivalrous Bunta Sugawara in a town also populated by evil boss Toru Abe. She’s also caught between amorous patrons and jealous colleagues. A beautifully shot tale with some lyrical scenes that rank among the most beautiful in director Kosaku Yamashita's filmography. But the problem is, this is a yakuza film but Fuji is strictly confined to geisha gear. The blood work is all left to Sugawara. That may have been the case in part 1 as well, but somehow it feels more regressive here, particularly after the previous film, even if the drama itself works pretty well.

Tales of Japan's Chivalrous Women: Duel of Swirling Flowers (日本女侠伝 血斗乱れ花) (Japan, 1971) [TV] – 4/5
Yamashita continues as a director in what is probably the best film in the series, and one of Fuji's best movies. Fuji inherits a petty mountain from dead husband Hiroyuki Nagato and tries to turn it into a profitable coal mine with the husband’s loyal colleague Rinichi Yamamoto. Private shipping company head Takakura aids with the logistics when greedy businessman Minoru Oki and his yakuza henchman Tatsuo Endo force boatman boss Bin Amatsu to block Fuji's dealings with other companies. This is a sweeping epic, comparable to the likes of Flower and Dragon, with a storyline spanning over a decade and showing Fuji's struggles that come with genuine emotional payback. It's a terrific role, despite leaving the swordfights to the actual yakuza characters. Yamamoto likewise has one of the best roles of his career as a genuinely caring aid to Fuji, as does Amatsu as indebted-to-Oki but not inherently evil man, a nice departure from his usual ruthless villain characters. Takakura is good as always, and gets to do the blood work in a slightly disappointing action climax (suffering from an overuse of freeze frame) followed by a great closing scene. Visually the film is pure poetry.



Tales of Japan's Chivalrous Women: Battle at Cape Himeyuri (日本女侠伝 激斗ひめゆり岬) (Japan, 1971) [TV] – 3/5
A slightly underwhelming last chapter that doesn't live up to its great premise. Fuji heads an Okinawa trucking company and is their most reckless driver. She's mostly seen in army green, often complete with cap and sunglasses. Quite a departure from her usual kimono form! Abe is a mainland yakuza who has debt-trapped a small village and has their men, women and children dig up valuable, volatile WWII ammunition. War vet gone short-fuse yakuza Sugawara balances between the two parties, with sympathies and professional ties on opposite sides. This film has bits of originality and political relevance here and there, from Fuji's army boots to present and past Okinawa invasion. It also has Machida as Amatsu's Okinawa-native karate goon who comes to realize he's playing in the wrong team. But none of these themes or characters are explored in much depth, and the moral conflicts tied to Sugawara and Machida's characters (who oddly both serve a similar narrative purpose) are only briefly touched. Perhaps strangest of all is the decision to introduce a comic relief character a mere 25 min before the film ends (usually these clowns make their appearances in the fitrst 25 min). Now, this is still a pretty good ninkyo film with bits of originality and a fair amount of entertainment. It doesn't really have any bad scenes. But one feels there was potential for much more.

[Takuma]

The Ghost Story of Oiwa's Spirit (怪談お岩の亡霊) (Japan, 1961) [TV] – 3.5/5
Japanese ghost stories are not my favourite genre, but if I were to watch one, it'd better be a samurai film starring Tomisaburo Wakayama and directed by Tai Kato. This one is. Wakayama is excellent as a violent brute samurai who comes up with a plot to kill his wife so that he could marry a younger girl. The classic tale (“Yotsuya kaidan”) has been filmed countless times before and after, but Kato treats it more as a gripping drama of real life horrors and less as a ghost story. The supernatural elements don't come until the last 25 minutes, which is when the film turns into a bloodbath. The film is also notably sparse on the usual spooky “is it real or imagination?” scenes that characterize a lot of other films of this type, and the one are found here usually end instantly with Wakayama's sword cutting someone’s head off. And that is a good thing!

In Search of Mother (瞼の母) (Japan, 1962) [TV] – 3.5/5
A teary melodrama about a man searching for his long lost mother is hardly my type of film, but if I were to watch one, it'd better be a matatabi yakuza film starring Kinnosuke Nakamura and directed by Tai Kato. This one is. The classic tale had been filmed many times since the 1930s, including once by Nobuo Nakagawa for Shintoho, but this was probably the first colour version. I’ve not seen the others, but Kato’s version is very economical (stylish without excess flashiness, consisting of a relatively small number of rather lengthy scenes) yet touching. It also really embodies the matatabi / wanderer feel, perhaps because of its main character missing roots, and is a classic of the genre for a reason.



13 Assassins (十三人の刺客) (Japan, 1963) [TV] – 4.5/5
The original tale, better known to modern audiences via Takashi Miike's dull, CGI-enhanced remake. The shogun's advisor (Tetsuro Tamba) creates a secret plan to assassinate the shogun's out-of-control brother, a daimyo who is executing men, women and children left and right for his personal pleasure. He brings together a dirty bunch of Toei tough guys (Chiezo Kataoka, Kanjuro Arashi, Ko Nishimura etc.) to send on a suicide plan. Their biggest adversary however is not the target himself, but his bodyguard (Ryohei Uchida), a strategic mastermind sworn to protect the boss whose guts he hates. This is a terrific film with a charismatic cast, incredible tension throughout the picture, and a well drawn strategic aspect with both parties trying to anticipate each other every move. The latter makes the action scenes particularly exciting since every move, attack and withdrawal aims to serve a bigger strategic plan, which the opponent in turn tries to sabotage with each move they make.

The Shogun Assassins (真田幸村の謀略) (Japan, 1979) [TV] – 3.5/5
Aka Renegade Ninjas. Sadao Nakajima's grand telling of Yukimura Sanada and his ninja troops taking a stance against shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu in the turbulent early years of the Tokugawa shogunate, climaxing in the famous battle of the Osaka castle. To be honest, among historical epics this is a bit on the goofy side (the film opens in outer space, and there's a giant SFX comet!) yet very entertaining (the film opens in outer space, and there's a giant SFX comet!). The film's base is only partly historical, since Sanada's ninjas (including Sasuke Sarutobi) for example have their basis more in legends than in confirmed history, something very much acknowledged by the film with its comic book character introduction screens. And let us not forget there’s also ninja magic, ninja nuns, and boobs (also ninja nun boobs). Hiroki Matsukata leads the cast, Hiroyuki Sanada plays one of the fighters, but it is Kinnosuke Nakamura who is having an obvious blast playing Ieyasu at his most evil. The film could be considered a middle entry is Toei's jidai geki comeback that started serious with Fukasaku's Yagyu Conspiracy and Ako Castle (both 1978) but later went ninja football (Shadow Warriors, 1980).



Lone Wolf and Cub: The Final Conflict (Japan, 1993) [TV] – 1.5/5
A watered down remake starring the annoying but popular television actor Masakazu Tamura. He was selected by Kazuo Koike himself, who stated he wanted to focus on drama instead of action this time. All controversy and provocative content has been cleaned out and replaced with sobbing and a few bloodless fights. Tamura plays a softer, cry-baby Igami Itto who must encounter a less evil, almost fatherly Retsudo (Tatsuya Nakadai). It is surprising this was a theatrical release, since it's clearly aimed at housewives watching afternoon dramas while cooking or cleaning. The only good thing about the film is some pretty scenery.

[Takuma]

Takuma, for the films you list as being seen on TV: do they show older Japanese films this regularly on TV or is there a specific channel dedicated to older films, like a Japanese TCM?

Specific channels, most importantly Toei Channel
https://www.toeich.jp/lineup

To a lesser extent, Neco
https://www.necoweb.com/neco/program/category.php?id=2

Nihon eiga senmon channel
https://www.nihon-eiga.com/program/indexyear.html

Jidai geki channel
https://www.jidaigeki.com/program/indexyear_pm.html