(1973)

REVIEWED BY-STEVE GENIER
DIRECTED BY-KINJI FUKASAKU
CAST-BUNTA SUGAWARA, HIROKI MATSUKATA, TATSUO UMEMIYA, TSUNEHIKO WATASE, NOBUO KANEKO, SEIZO FUKUMOTO and GORO IBUKI.
SOURCE-EUREKA UK PAL REGION 2 DVD

I certainly haven’t had enough with my new fascination or should I say renewed interest in the worldly brutal world of the Japanese Yakuza films. This time via the onslaught of Kinji Fukasaku’s series of films that made the genre a household name in the late 60's and throughout the 70's. In this set, beginning with my viewing of STREET MOBSTER, then onto YAKUZA GRAVEYARD and finally with what I feel is the pinnacle of these three films, BATTLES WITHOUT HONOR AND HUMANITY. Simply this film is where everything beginning and ends when one wants to discover this bloody war on film. Basically draw from letters from a Yakuza while in prision, it chronicles the rebirth of the Yakuza after Japan surrenders during World War 2. It perfectly displays in great detail the blood and chaos these underground starts ups had to go through to establish themselves as a force to reckon with. Fukasaku centers his story around Hirono (Bunta Sugawara) who is sworn into the Yamomori gang. This after spending time in prison and helping another Yakuza, Wagasugi escape to bail him out, but not before they become blood brothers.

As the Yakuza Godfather Yamomori gains power, he also intimidates Hirono to do his bidding. Making him believe that all is lost if he doesn’t help, also telling him that he will give him all the money he owns if Hirono spends time in jail for carry out a killing of another gang leader. In which Hirono carries out and gets caught thanks to being set up. Once in jail, Yakuza members begin to get killed off, including his Hirono’s blood brother Wagasugi. Drugs begin to come into play as the Korean War begins. This creates conflicts between the waring gangs who try to gain a foothold in this lucrative business. Some want to keep the business from going this way, and going the way of legitimate business owners. Hirono finally is released from jail after a few years to find out that Yamomori isn’t a man of his word.

In grand Yakuza style BATTLES WITHOUT HONOR AND HUMANITY pits you right in the middle of some of the most pretty intense cinematic events. Your caught in the middle of a mad scramble to blood spilling brutality that only director Fukasaku is able to convey. Together with the brute nature of actor Bunta Sugawara, this film is certainly one Japanese Tsumani that finds no capable reading for. Draped in the usual handheld camera style that Fukasaka often incorporates in many of his films, topped with a jazzy score belted out by Tsushima Toshiaki, one that is similar to his other Fukasaku effort, STREET MOBSTER. BATTLES is certainly a great starting point for those who would like to dig in deeper without getting their baby finger chopped off.

Without honor is certainly the main topic here too, you can’t go through this film for anymore then a few minutes before someone is betraying another. There is simply too much back stabbing going on here. If one were new to this genre, they would certainly be overwhelmed by the amount of action going on here, especially within the first few minutes of the film. Don’t let this scary you though, this type of action is the pinnacle of a great Yakuza film. Between the scrambling of the camera to cover the massive amount of fight scenes, and the changing of guards really can bring sheer anxiety to the thin skinned. All in all though remember this is pure entertainment at it’s best, a source in which badly needs to be better represented on the shinny format here in North America.

Once again the Eureka isn’t the greatest presentation, and this is certainly a sad thing. I hope with this being apart of the newly released YAKUZA PAPERS box set from HVE, their will be justice done with this timeless Yakuza classic. With the Eureka disc, the film has been restored but not to it’s full potential. Visually the print is not too bad, though the sound is only presented in mono. There is a serious lacking of extras as well, though extras don’t have to make up the disc, but it does help when the film’s restoration just isn’t there.

STORY-5 BITCH SLAPS
PICTURE-3 BITCH SLAPS
AUDIO-2 BITCH SLAPS
EXTRAS-1.5 BITCH SLAPS
OVERALL DVD- 2.5 BITCH SLAPS

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