Yakuza Wolf: I Perform Murder (1972) review

YAKUZA WOLF: I PERFORM MURDER 1972

Sonny Chiba (Gosuke Himuro), Koji Nanbara (Izumi Shojiro), Ryoji Hayama (Ishiguro), Tomoko Mayama (Saeko), Toura Rokusho (Shimaoka Mitsuo), Hideo Murota (Yasuo Onuma) Yayoi Watanabe (Kyoko Himuro), Makoto Sato (Jun Eguchi), Hirohisa Nakata (Tsukahara), Goto Rumi (Izumi Mayako), Kobayashi Akira (Shimizu), Akira Kuji (Yano)

Directed by Ryoichi Takamori

The Short Version: A transitional film in Sonny Chiba's career--going from quirky, comedic cop thrillers to brooding anti-heroes and high-flying Karate fighters. Packed with sex and violence, ample nudity and machine gun battles, YAKUZA WOLF is easily one of the trashiest and bleak films on the JAC founder's resume. Chiba's vengeance-seeking assassin definitely does a lot of killing in what amounts to a modern day samurai western modeled on Kurosawa's YOJIMBO (1961) and Corbucci's Kurosawa influenced DJANGO (1966). Sleaziness aside, director Takamori adds some artistic flourishes and a Euro-western aesthetic to his Yakuza wasteland. Highly recommended for fans of classy looking Japanese trash movies and those wondering what Sonny Chiba would be like playing the strong, murderously silent type.

***WARNING! This review contains images of nudity***

Gosuke Himuro returns to Japan from Okinawa to settle things with the Yakuza gangs responsible for his father's death and the selling of his sister into prostitution. Pitting the various factions against one another, Gosuke silently slashes his way to get to Izumi, the big man running the syndicate. Meanwhile, Detective Shimaoka wishes to smash the gangs and makes a deal with Gosuke, allowing him to have his revenge.

The samurai film and the Italian western influenced one another in their respective genres. One of the most famous examples being Sergio Leone adapting Akira Kurosawa's YOJIMBO (1961) into A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS (1964). Another Italian western director inspired by the Japanese who subsequently left his mark on them was Sergio Corbucci; his two most indelible pictures on Far Easterns are DJANGO (1966) and THE GREAT SILENCE (1967). DJANGO (itself influenced by YOJIMBO) and the Kurosawa-affected FISTFUL were clearly inspirations for Ryoichi Takamori's stylish, demoralized crime thriller.

Director Takamori worked with Chiba on a variety of television programs and movies; one of the most famous being Chiba's big breakout on the popular KEY HUNTER (1968-1973) series. On the big screen, he guided Chiba through two of the four YAKUZA DEKA pictures; those being YAKUZA DEKA 3: POISON GAS THREAT and YAKUZA DEKA 4: NO GRAVE FOR US (both 1971). In 1973, Takamori would get experience directing JAC's founder in two Karate movies, BODYGUARD FANG (BODYGUARD KIBA) and BODYGUARD FANG: DEADLY TRIANGLE. In between these cops and Karate films, Takamori and screenwriter Konami Fumio put Sonny Chiba in a role that was darker, more violent than anything he'd done up to that time. 

Sonny Chiba's Gosuke Himuro is akin to the Underworld's Grim Reaper. Virtually untouchable till the last 30 minutes, he's humanized when--in a nod to DJANGO's coffin dragging avenger--Gosuke's hands are smashed by two separate villains in two separate scenes. At the end, during the settling of accounts, Gosuke's ingenuity returns the use of his hands by utilizing a steering wheel and a tire for a gun mount to take out Izumi and his gang. In another ode to Corbucci, a gangster ambushes his enemies by firing a machine gun from inside a coffin. 

Overall, this is one of the man's most provocative roles; and one you scarcely hear anything about. While Chiba's best cinematic representations to international audiences showcase him mercilessly mugging for the camera as deranged Karate fighters, he does none of that in YAKUZA WOLF; he shows zero emotion of any kind. It's an extraordinary role for the actor and one that needs more exposure.

Konami Fumio's script has a few too many characters than necessary and only 90 minutes to explore them all. One of the best his script has to offer is Saeko, a prostitute that falls in love with Gosuke. She leaves that world behind in the hopes he will do the same; but just when she's enjoying her transformation into Suzy Homemaker, she realizes Gosuke must see his vendetta to the end. Saeko's character doesn't come into full bloom as it should since the exploitation and exposition can't coexist equally. The same thing befalls some of the other characters. Since the unsavory elements dominate, the few instances of poignancy gives the impression Takamori's movie and Konami's script wants to be more than it actually is.

Konami also lent his pen to the FEMALE CONVICT SCORPION series--the first of which debuted in August of 1972, seven months after Chiba's dark gangster epic. Like the first two installments of that series, YAKUZA WOLF contains some of those films' style in its color palette and camera placement. It's a strange blend of artistry and trash.

One such instance where art intersects with sordidness occurs when Gosuke finally locates his sister. Sneaking into the sex den she's being forced to sell her body in, he witnesses a mass orgy where drugged-out participants engage in group sex while others indulge in sexual sadism with knives. The years of drugs and sexual degradation having taken their toll, Kyoko doesn't even recognize her brother--believing he's just another customer. In a powerful moment that may raise some eyebrows, Chiba, shortly after saving his drug-addled sister, basically gives up on trying to bring her back to sanity and lets her go off on her own; only moments later she's hit by a car! 

If you've seen Chiba's two EXECUTIONER movies you'll recognize Makoto Sato. As Jun Eguchi, he's a rival gangster who, like Gosuke, desires vengeance against Izumi and his powerful crime syndicate. These two have the most complicated character arc in the movie. Actually, another villain in the movie played by Akira Kobayashi has the same relationship with Gosuke as Sato's character does; both are Gosuke's enemies; both bust up one of his hands; and both characters could've been combined or simply not included at all. 

A former Toho actor, Sato signed with Toei in 1970. This was Sato's first of several works with Sonny Chiba. Obayashi Nobuhiko, a director of TV commercials who made his film directing debut with the delirious cult favorite HOUSE in 1977, referred to Makoto Sato as the Japanese Charles Bronson. Incidentally, Obayashi directed Bronson in the famous 'Mandom' television ads beginning in 1970; Bronson being the first American actor to appear in Japanese TV commercials. Sato and his stone-faced features can also be found in Chiba pictures like THE KILLING MACHINE (1975), MESSAGE FROM SPACE (1978), and SHOGUN'S NINJA (1980).

There are two films in the YAKUZA WOLF series, both released in 1972. Ryoichi Takamori did not return as director for YAKUZA WOLF: EXTEND MY CONDOLENCES (1972). Directed by Buichi Saito (LONE WOLF AND CUB: BABY CART IN PERIL), the tone of that film strangely reverts back to the comic cop shenanigans of Chiba's earlier YAKUZA DEKA series.

As would be the case in many of Chiba's Karate pictures (particularly those of Kazuhiko Yamaguchi), the camera does all sorts of gymnastics during some of the action sequences. Thankfully, Nakao Yoshio creates some stylish compositions for Takamori's modern day samurai western--capturing images of a concrete wasteland standing in for a desert landscape.

With its high level of brutality and dedication to Italian western conventions, YAKUZA WOLF (1972) is an unusual, standout entry on Chiba's voluminous resume. Other than a western photo shoot, this is the only time the actor has portrayed such a role. It's not as gory as his splattery Karate pictures, but is worth hunting down for those seeking something wildly uncultured and stylistically sleazy.

Running time: 01:27:42

The Killing Machine (1975) review

 

THE KILLING MACHINE 1975 aka SHORINJI KEMPO

Sonny Chiba (Doshin So), Makoto Sato (Otaki Kentaro), Yutaka Nakajima (Kiku Sakamoto), Makoto Naoya (Hiroshi Tomoda), Etsuko Shihomi (Miho), Kyoichi Sato (Kaga), Tetsuro Tamba (Police Chief Nobuyuki), Rikiya Yasuoka (Takehara), Kinji Takinami (Akamatsu)

Directed by Norifumi Suzuki

The Short Version: Bone-breaker extraordinaire Sonny Chiba returns to the screen essaying the real life martial artist, Doshin So, the founder of Shorinji Kempo. There's elements of Master So in this film, but sensationalism dominates; especially in the last 40 minutes. Suzuki tries to take things seriously most of the time, but the urge for breaking arms, geysers of blood, and scissoring off a rapists penis for a hungry dog is just too much to resist. Arguably one of the Bad Man From Japan's bests movies, it sits stoically alongside other brute-tastic, body mangling movies like THE STREET FIGHTER (1974) and THE EXECUTIONER (1974).

After Japan surrenders in 1945, Doshin So, an undercover agent behind enemy lines in China, goes back home to Osaka. Upon arriving there, he rescues a young lady sold into prostitution by a Yakuza gang, and takes in a band of orphaned children. Running into trouble with some American GI's, Master So cripples two of the MP's and is arrested. The Japanese chief of police is sympathetic to the martial arts master, and allows him to leave quietly. Leaving for Shikoku, Doshin So sets up a martial arts school, and soon runs into the same Yakuza mobsters from Osaka. Along with corrupt lawmen, the mob begin taking lands for their own use, and So's school is highly prized by them. A violent war between Doshin and his students versus the gangsters litters the landscape with blood and broken bones.

So far the only movie based -- as loose as it is -- on the life of Nakano Michiomi, later to be known as Doshin So (or Kaiso, 'the founder'), the man who brought Shaolin martial arts to Japan. Filmed in cooperation with Japan's Shorinji Kempo Federation, Isao Matsumoto's script inserts small chunks of the real Master So's experiences, using these bits and pieces to build the action portions of the story around them. These autobiographical moments are gotten out of the way rather quickly so as to make room for three sub-plots that are all connected to Chiba's character. Throughout the picture, Doshin So acts as a problem solving Karate savant; a martial arts Moses, if you will. These three arcs are modestly peppered with violent interactions with the villains who will feature heavily in the last half of the picture when the exploitation portions of the film set in. 

Taking place during a three year period in Master So's life (1945-1948), the film begins at the end of WW2, and So's job as a military intelligence agent is done after Japan's surrender. Returning to his homeland, he sees a devastated, demoralized Japan. He then makes it his mission to aid in rebuilding Japan by rebuilding the crushed spirits of its citizens. He founds Shorinji Kempo in 1947; and that's the extent of the historical connections. There's also a brief flashback to So's childhood when he visits his mother's grave. As for accounts on the real man himself....

According to sources, Michiomi enlisted in the military at 17, and eventually found himself stationed in Manchuria as a secret agent. It was also during this time he became heavily influenced by Chinese martial arts, particularly the kung fu styles of Shaolin. Taught an array of locks, grappling, and throwing techniques (which makes up a lot of the martial arts seen in the film), Michiomi learned faster than the average student. His master, Wen Tai Zhong made him his successor, granting Michiomi the title of Grandmaster; and changing his name to Doshin So (Religious Servant of the Way). He returned to Japan and began his efforts of reinvigorating the Japanese by reaching out to, and eventually training the youth of the day.

One of the most fascinating aspects of Doshin So the man was his abandoning of ideological, religious, and political polarities in favor of individual qualities of a person; pushing his students to do their best, and find the confidence within themselves to re-establish their sense of purpose and self-worth; this, too, is touched on in the movie on a handful of occasions; particularly when he is forced to get physical with the now one-armed Tomoda (one of the three dramatic arcs presented in the film). Drunk and wishing to die, Master So throws him out into the rain and begins wailing on him, tossing him around like a rag doll to try and anger Tomoda to the point he'll realize he can't let his crippling injury allow him to give up.

Racism is an issue that's espoused upon; it's not a subject the script dwells on, but it makes its presence known a few times. There's disdain from the Japanese towards the Americans, and an even more palpable sense of prejudice from the Japanese towards the Korean population residing there. This discrimination is the catalyst for two of the three expositional branches Suzuki's movie uses to tell its story.

For example, Otaki Kentaro (frequent Chiba co-star, Makoto Sato) returns home from the way only to find his wife has remarried, and to a Korean. Thinking he was killed in battle, he's stunned at his wife's admission; and upon discovering she has a son now, he's even more devastated. Things get no better when Otaki learns the son is actually his. Instead of breaking up this new family, Otaki decides to go his separate way. He contemplates suicide till his friend Doshin convinces him otherwise.

Known for his sleazy pinky violence movies, and artistically unsavory films along the lines of SCHOOL OF THE HOLY BEAST (1974), Norifumi Suzuki mixes Karate action with heavy doses of drama in SHORINJI KEMPO. It's an unusual pairing that periodically mimics the outrageous antics seen in Shigehiro Ozawa's THE STREET FIGHTER (1974) the year prior. However, Suzuki's film enters Ozawa's nihilistic arena in a big way after the 50 minute mark -- highlighted by one sequence in which Master So punishes a Yakuza for raping a young girl. He pulls out a pair of scissors and severs the man's penis! Tossing the sausage to the ground, the meat attracts the attention of a dog who then makes a meal out of the malcontent's member. 

The Doshin So of Suzuki's film, and of Chiba's portrayal likewise mirrors THE STREET FIGHTER's Tokuma Tsurugi's penchant for bone breaking. Director Suzuki tries to one-up his colleague by having Chiba bend, twist, and contort his victims limbs till they no longer resemble functioning appendages. In addition to all the crushed bones and fractured ribs, there's a gory dismemberment with a LONE WOLF level of arterial spray.

The real Doshin So worked with lead star Sonny Chiba in preparation for shooting this picture. The martial arts may be there, but the movie was the opposite of So's teachings. A disclaimer at the beginning somewhat confirms this; but then an ending title card tries to justify all the onscreen brutality with a Blaise Pascal quote, "Justice without force is powerless; force without justice is violence". The quote is applicable to this movie, only it's fickle about being a serious story, and one riddled with violence and Karate fights. The films American release as THE KILLING MACHINE only pushed the movie further away from the philosophical underpinnings of Shorinji Kempo, and reinforced the action and brutality quotient stamped into the film like a hellfire missile of Chiba combos.

Regarding the violence, much of it is foisted upon Sonny Chiba and those close to him in this, one of his best movies. Playing a man prone to passivity, the Cheebster keeps that patently mean visage in check, evoking just enough intense vexation to know that he's bringing the pain, and someone else will be feeling it. He actually gets to emote a bit, and expand on his range as an actor for this sort of picture. Chiba would star in a similar movie released in August of that year, KARATE BULL FIGHTER; a film based on the life of his martial arts teacher, Masutatsu Oyama. It was the first of a trilogy. Coming on the heels of his iconic THE STREET FIGHTER (1974) and the similar THE EXECUTIONER (1974), SHORINJI KEMPO was released in February of 1975. It was one of nine(!) movies the actor appeared in that year.

This was Suzuki's first outing with the martial arts superstar. Six years later, he'd be working with JAC again with the wild SHOGUN'S NINJA (1980), the modern day bizarro martial arts actioner ROARING FIRE (1981), and KAGEMARU, THE NINJA (1983), a live-action adaptation of the anime IGANO KAGEMARU. 

Composer Shunsuke Kikuchi's riffs have that standard Chiba sound to them like many of the actors other Karate pictures around this time. Kikuchi composed some of those too, like KARATE BULL FIGHTER (1975). There's nothing remarkable about the SHORINJI KEMPO score, but the cues suffice in their usage. One of the best pieces is the wa-wa guitar heard in the finale. Kikuchi was incredibly prolific -- to  a degree that might make Morricone blush. Just some of the man's genre works include the music and theme song for many of the KAMEN RIDER series', IRON KING, and the MESSAGE FROM SPACE television series; his movie work includes GOKE, BODY SNATCHER FROM HELL (1968), the last four Showa Gamera films from GUIRON onward, and the SISTER STREET FIGHTER (1974) film series.

SHORINJI KEMPO is sometimes lost in the shuffle, or on down the list when Chiba's available filmography is discussed; this is unfortunate as it's one of the man's bests pictures. It features some of Chiba's best martial arts sequences displaying a level of control that was vastly different from his more famous roles as the STREET FIGHTER Tokuma Tsurugi and Koga of the two EXECUTIONER movies. It's another martial arts film, but the character Chiba plays is multi-layered; something he hadn't played yet in these pictures up to this point. While many would immediately recommend THE STREET FIGHTER, this pseudo-biographical actioner is an engaging introduction to The Killing Machine, Sonny Chiba.  

This review is representative of the BCI/Ronin Blu-ray.

Memoirs of Japanese Assassins (1969) review

 

MEMOIRS OF JAPANESE ASSASSINS (NIPPON ANSATSU HIROKU)

Shinichi "Sonny" Chiba (Onuma 'Shichiro' Tadashi), Tamiya Jiro (Fuji), Kataoka Chiezo (Inoue Nissho), (Kiyama), Fuji Junko (Taka-chan), Sugawara Bunta (Asahi Heigo), Wakayama Tomisaburo, Yoshida Teruo, Takakura Ken (Aizawa Saburo), Tsuruta Koji (Isobe), Takahashi Choei (Furuta Daijiro), Machida Kyosuke, Mimasu Aiko

Directed by Nakajima Sadao

The Short Version: Nine historical assassinations from the 19th and 20th centuries are cinematically documented in this sprawling, doom and gloom epic from Toei Studios starring many of Chambara's big swords in roles of various shapes and sizes. The politics are thick as molasses, and no doubt this movie -- quite different from Toei's more familiar (on these shores, anyways) comic book exploitation -- was highly controversial back in the day. Sonny Chiba no doubt helped cement his enormously successful career with a strikingly poignant, non-fighting, dramatic performance here. Yes, The Street Fighter engages in a different sort of battle as a young, bewildered terrorist in training.

"Terrorism is the rightful measure to fight against the ruling class."



Onuma Tadashi, a confused 18 year old eking out a living surrounded by poverty, corruption and dissidents is torn between making an honest living during economic strife, and joining a secret band of ultra-nationalists with dreams of governmental reform. Experiencing a succession of emotional and financial set backs pushes him to reluctantly side with the anti-establishment reformists led by a priest named Inoue Nissho. Initially it's decided they will all die through the bloodshed they will bring, but a series of events and failed plots lead to the eventual failure, arrest and execution of this group of terrorists consisting of civilians and young, rebellious military men.

Nakajima Sadao is likely most familiar in America for his fantasy works such as WATARI NINJA BOY (1966) and RENEGADE NINJAS ([1976]SANADA YUKIMURA NO BOURYAKU). His larger body of work --largely unseen outside of Japan -- seems to center comfortably around Yakuza and Chambara movies. MEMOIRS OF JAPANESE ASSASSINS is taken from Japanese history, adapted for the screen by Nakajima (from an original story by Suzuki Tadashi) as per the works of men who lived during the tumultuous 20th century period that the bulk of the film takes place in.




The film jumps around from one decade to the next documenting various assassinations and their historical context within the extremist political turmoil during three of Japan's periods of socio-political change -- Meiji, Taisho and Showa. We begin in 1860 Edo with the assassination of Grand Elder Naosuke Tairo. This is the only time MEMOIRS OF JAPANESE ASSASSINS caters to jidai-geki conventions; the remaining two plus hours occupying the film fall into the gendai-geki style of Nipponese cinema, those being modern day dramas. So those expecting this to be a sword-slinger might wish to stop reading now.

From there the narrator takes us through the earliest portions of the 20th century where industrialization may have taken hold, but man's propensity for violence remains unchanged. It's here where the politics mercilessly hammer the viewer over the head. Both sides of the spectrum are explored, although Nakajima's treatment of the material, at times, seems to be an indictment towards this sort of anarchist thinking that to get what you want, one must kill for it. Such as a sequence early in the picture described below.

Furuta Daijiro is a 26 year old anarchist. Like others in the film, he's taken from history. He founded the Osaka Guillotine Terrorist Group in the early 1920s. He wishes to blow himself up to assassinate the Regent. He has an acquaintance with a bomb, but Furuta hasn't the money to pay for it. He tries to coax his more reasonable friend into loaning him the money, but he refuses. Instead, Furuta's friend tries to pacify his violent intentions by passing along advice to a more logical solution to achieve the alleged change that is needed, or the change that Furuta feels is in order. 



This sort of extremist thinking, that wealth and success are evil needed to be stamped out, is reflective of the current, and ever weakening state of America that teeters more and more towards a Socialist system with high unemployment and little hope for achievement. Why work for what you want when you can take it by force? Rich or poor, corruption is everywhere. In the case of Daijiro, he murders for it. Upon his capture for killing a banker, Daijiro is sentenced to death. Two years later, he walks to do his doom while he thinks to himself all the wonderful things he took for granted in life, that he will never again get to enjoy. It's this sequence, and this sequence alone that foreshadows what will come after we're introduced to Sonny Chiba's character.

The bulk of the story concerns an incident that took place in 1932. Onuma Tadashi (Sonny Chiba) is in court and details the crime he committed that put him there. Through flashbacks, we follow the spirited and seemingly honorable Onuma Tadashi. He despises his lowly job as a delivery boy for a dyeing mill. An offer is soon made to him for a better job at a bakery. But the naive boss is inexperienced, falls prey to loan sharks and is unable to make the proper changes to his factory ordered of him by inspectors.




From there, Onuma (or Shichiro, as he's often called) moves from one dramatic downfall to the next; each life-altering experience shaping and molding him further into the tragic character he will ultimately become. After a failed suicide attempt, Onuma joins a religion based terrorist organization that is founded on the principals that Japan is totally corrupt and depraved and must be saved from this betrayal of their perception of the nations values. The leader of this group of patient anarchists, the priest Inoue Nissho devises a calculated plot of national reform that will culminate in the suicide of each member, whether their plan succeeds, or not.




After aligning with Manchurian forces in 1931, it is soon realized that corruption has seeped into the group. This then leads to their elaborate bloodshed bound revolution being exposed by the military. Onuma again loses confidence in himself wherein he resorts to prayer and fasting that leads to him becoming seriously ill. After a period of convalescence, Onuma makes the decision that he, and he alone will instigate this so-called revolution with the death of Japan's Finance Minister, Inoue Junnosuke.

Nakajima's film is loaded down with characters. It's almost impossible to keep up with them all with a single viewing; and at nearly two and a half hours, there's simply not enough time to soak them all in. It appears some editing may have played havoc with some of these characters, or else Nakajima's screenplay was too enormous to maintain focus to explore them all sufficiently. Editing seems the most likely choice. But one character serves as the focal point; a young actor who was about to break big as a martial arts action star. 




Sonny Chiba essays the role of Onuma Tadashi, the individual whom the bulk of the movie revolves around. With most of Chiba's earlier work unavailable to the mainstream masses, it's unusual to see him in such a role that isn't action related. Many of his fans will remember him from earlier science fiction films like TERROR BENEATH THE SEA and GOLDEN BAT (both 1966). He was already involved with KEY HUNTER, a wildly popular show that debuted in the late 1960s.

If you're more familiar with Chiba's Karate roles, you'll either be pleasantly surprised, or resoundingly bored by his performance. Chiba is stunning here, and nothing short of amazing. He never wields a sword, nor knows any martial arts. His emotional range runs the gamut from anger, to tearful sorrow, to hopelessness and finally a cold-blooded assassin. There's no hint of an action hero here. Chiba's character is unsure of himself and his ideals virtually the entire movie till towards the end.  It's really quite striking when compared with more well known works like THE STREET FIGHTER (1974) and THE EXECUTIONER (1974) among numerous others.




Since the bulk of his filmography and television work is unavailable in North America, it's unknown just how many similar roles Chiba did. Based on this one alone, he does a marvelous job while other big names such as Tomisaburo (SHOGUN ASSASSIN) Wakayama, Takakura (BULLET TRAIN) Ken and Sugawara (BATTLES WITHOUT HONOR & HUMANITY) Bunta all play assassins in what amounts to cameo roles, or guest starring roles.

Tomita Isao's score suits the depressing mood and by the end of the film, a recurring theme song may still be looming large in your head. Far from a movie that will leave you feeling refreshed when it's over, it's deadly serious and prime for post-viewing debates from a historical perspective. Die hard Chiba and Japanese cinema fans will find a lot to chew on here, but most others expecting frequent gore and bloodshed (it's here, but relegated to the beginning and ending) will likely give up about 40 minutes into these MEMOIRS.

This review is representative of a Fansubbed DVD which can be bought HERE.