Leader of the new generation of Nikkatsu directors in the late 1960s, Yasuharu Hasebe came up with a number of mostly realistic films about Yakuza life, of which “Retaliation” is a prominent sample, despite featuring a protagonist from the “old guard”, Akira Kobayashi.
As the story begins, Jiro is just being released from prison. However, his future looks anything but ideal. Before even walking a few meters from the prison door, Hino, another yakuza, takes him to a nearby area and attacks him, seeking revenge for a friend Jiro killed. Hino’s girlfriend stops the fight, but he is not deterred from seeking revenge. Furthermore, as soon as Jiro visits his old boss, he is informed that his gang is practically non-existent, a fact that forces him to approach the powerful Hasama family to ask for a job. Out of respect for his former boss, Hasama offers him a task,...
As the story begins, Jiro is just being released from prison. However, his future looks anything but ideal. Before even walking a few meters from the prison door, Hino, another yakuza, takes him to a nearby area and attacks him, seeking revenge for a friend Jiro killed. Hino’s girlfriend stops the fight, but he is not deterred from seeking revenge. Furthermore, as soon as Jiro visits his old boss, he is informed that his gang is practically non-existent, a fact that forces him to approach the powerful Hasama family to ask for a job. Out of respect for his former boss, Hasama offers him a task,...
- 2/1/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Prior to helming a trio of the Meiko Kaji starred Stray Cat Rock series, the fourth and final film in the Female Convict Scorpion series, or a number of violent pink films after Nikkatsu studios slid into the gutter of softcore porno flicks, director Yasuharu Hasebe began his career with a trio of yakuza action quickies featuring budding genre standbys Jô Shishido and Akira Kobayashi. The second and third, 1967’s Massacre Gun and 1968’s Retaliation, respectively, have been lovingly released for the first time on home video by Arrow Video, restoring bit by bit Hasebe’s rather spotty oeuvre by highlighting his knack for stylish economy in his early work.
Essentially a downbeat yakuza film that covers all the basics in warring gangs over territory and reputation, Retaliation is unique in that it also dabbles in enemy bromance and the inevitable overtaking of nature by the unstoppable force of industry.
Essentially a downbeat yakuza film that covers all the basics in warring gangs over territory and reputation, Retaliation is unique in that it also dabbles in enemy bromance and the inevitable overtaking of nature by the unstoppable force of industry.
- 5/19/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
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