I still can’t believe Sonatine wasn’t well received in Japan, those 90’s beat Takeshi films were my introduction to the genre, and I love them so much. Boiling point is probably my favourite.
@ashleybanks-wm4cg7 ай бұрын
Sonatine is masterpiece because you go in expecting lots of action but there is none until the end but oddly enough that doesn't disappoint you at all like what an amazing builduo of multiple moving parts
@justaguy27327 ай бұрын
@@ashleybanks-wm4cg yeah that kind of tense peace, where its calm, and they’re having fun, but you know something is coming. It reminds me of the feeling of save rooms in Resident Evil
@ashleybanks-wm4cg7 ай бұрын
@@justaguy2732 yep
@SidewaysBurnouts5 ай бұрын
I love Beat Takishi but he gets too indulgent with art house stuff when half his audience is there for violence. I think Outrage and VIolent Cop are his best movies. I tired to get though his other stuff but it always puts me to sleep.
@justaguy27325 ай бұрын
@@SidewaysBurnouts I don't think playing to an audience's expectations is necessarily a great way to go, but there are some cases where I do think you're right (mostly the post-90's ones)
@KitsGravity5 ай бұрын
I have watched Battles Without Honor and Humanity first film. Was a very good insight on grassroots level where Yakuza started from in the post war Japan.
@kaelinboone921810 ай бұрын
I found you because of my love of the RGG games. I love that you use the music from the games in your videos! keep up the good work i'm cheering for you over here!
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
Thank you so much! RGG has been such an inspiration for my videos, only fair to use its music 😬 haha
@mikostubborn8 ай бұрын
My first Kitano’s movie was Outrage,after that i sought every single film by Kitano especially his Yakuza movie,thankyou for giving this new information,nice video!
@anikihistory8 ай бұрын
My first Kitano movie was Violent Cop, I just HAD to check out everything else he did after that haha Thanks for watching and commenting btw 🙏🏼 appreciate that a lot
@ze393410 ай бұрын
Got a hunch that this will be the best video yet.
@ze39349 ай бұрын
I was right. Just one thing to add, there are many recent yakuza tv series which are quite nice but most are not with any subtitles.
@Haydenormous8 ай бұрын
This channel needs more love🙏
@optimusmaximus9646Ай бұрын
Great summary. One of my favourite Yakuza movies of all time is "A Family" (2020), directed by Michihito Fujii and starring Gô Ayano. Not your usual yakuza flick because if its evocative themes, this had me in tears. "Battles Without Honor and Humanity" Film series (better known as the Yakuza Papers) starring Bunta Sugawara and "New Battles" Without Honor and Humanity", also starring Bunta Sugawara but in another role were brilliant masterpieces of the Yakuza genre. I am also a fan of Takeshi Kitano's movies...especially the Outrage trilogy. I find it bizarre that the audiences laughed at KItano's character in Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence. To me he was cold and brutal soldier, but as most Japanese people (who were at the time still in denial of the atrocities in Japanese prison camps in WWII) were already familiar with him as a comedian, it makes sense. It is disappointing they couldn't see him in a new role. However, I don't think many Japanese people would have laughed at him after when he started making yakuza films. His characters were no less brutal than the prison guard he played in Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence.
@WrestlingColin6 ай бұрын
My all-time favourite Yakuza film is called Pale Flower, 1964. It's a masterpiece in my opinion. Very moody, very ominous, very serious, and just a little experimental and avant garde.
@GR8_S8N9 ай бұрын
always in-depth, thoroughly researched & high quality. great channel.
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
Thank you! 👏🏻
@Jobe-139 ай бұрын
RIP Itami Juzo.
@staycxld10 ай бұрын
Takeshi is the GOAT
@jacavanheesch45934 ай бұрын
i didnt know he also made takeshi,s castle. fucking love this guys yakuza roles and now i love him more for making me laugh with takeshi,s castle
@CrimsonSkyLine9 ай бұрын
Feel like Takashi Miike movies,specially the first Dead or Alive,deserved a mention in the vid,while not entirely focused on the yakuza,it defo had alot of themes about how criminals effected the life of refugees in japan,and the bizarre and unpridictable tone of it was defiantly one of the biggest inspirations of the RGG games
@ashleybanks-wm4cg9 ай бұрын
I haven't seen the vid yet but he doesn't mention Takashi Mike? Well he needs to make a part 2 because him and Takeshi Kitano are the Pinnacle Takeshi Miike pushes the boundaries of what can be shown on scren and he is well documented as being prolific i have seen 13 of his movies and still havent seen them all I was just watching First Love last night and its the ultimate Yakuza vs Triad movie I think ive seen First Love a hundred times ANIKI needs to start with that movie amd For Loves Sake if he has the time
@CrimsonSkyLine9 ай бұрын
He did get a mention in the vid, but yeah i agree he defo deserves a bigger spot@@ashleybanks-wm4cg
@justaguy27327 ай бұрын
He directed almost 120 films though, so it’s hard to really associate him with an era or genre, he’s almost a brand. (Not a criticism though, I like some of his work, but I can see why he didn’t get a segment)
@ShaneRob939 ай бұрын
Great video. I'm glad you talked about Itami's 'suicide', definitely an interesting case.
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
I never heard about that case before making this video, and I've seen Tampopo multiple times. Super sad what happened to Itami, he was a fantastic director
@EJ_Red7 ай бұрын
@@anikihistory I was curious and looked it up, apparently years later a member of the accused yakuza group (Forgot its name, nor do I recall if it was a former or still ongoing member) confirmed that they dragged him to the top of the building and gave him two choices after putting a gun to his head, "jump and he may live or stay and they will shoot." Did you come across this story too?
@AGS3639 ай бұрын
Question: I want to make a Yakuza movie day. Suntory Whiskey and cigarettes are already at hand. But which three movies should I watch?
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
What a great idea man. I'd personally go for Battles Without Honor and Humanity, Violent Cop and then Minbo to lighten things up a bit in the end 👏🏻
@lotsageorges10 ай бұрын
I love Takashi Miike movies.
@Sarke29 ай бұрын
What an amazing documentary, i am big fan of Yakuza movies for many many years now, you have mentioned mostly i like myself, Street Mobster is my favorite by Fukasaku, Bunta Sugawara is just amazing in that role, violent and wild. I would also mention Sympathy for the underdog from 1971 also directed by Fukasaku, which probably influenced a lot Kitano Sonatine, it is also happening in the Okinawa, fantastic crime movie, also Yakuza Graveyard from Fukasaku, movie from 1979 with Tetsuya Wattari is just brilliant. Also i would mention Takashi Miike specifical Yakuza movies, Bird People in China (1998) and Dead Or Alive 2:Birds (2000), really special experiences, also Agitator (2001) from Miike is pure brilliance, from Kitano my favorite is for sure Sonatine, like it more than Hana-Bi/Fireworks and Boiling Point is also special experience for me (1990).
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
You know your stuff! Thanks for adding some good recommendations too, seems like there's a lot of movies in the genre that i have yet to check out myself 😬
@Noffy179 ай бұрын
I’ll be sure to check out A Family thanks for the recommendation
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
Hope you like it as much as I did 🫶🏻
@korosuchimu14793 ай бұрын
Takeshi Kitano is by far my favorite movie director. His movies are incredible
@hadinasrallah8928Күн бұрын
japanese cinema and RGG games?! my kinda channel! (i freaked out when kurosawa and ozu were mentioned in a sidequest in LAD 8)
@Merle198710 ай бұрын
I'll watch them all.
@madhukarg80528 ай бұрын
man , i want to watch all of the movies
@ghost_fatcat7 ай бұрын
I too like the velvety smooth jazzy tones of the Street Fighter 6 battle hub theme
@neonkenomi3207 ай бұрын
Gotta say I love the vid, what are your intial thoughts on Ridley Scott's Black Rain?
@kayebee47944 ай бұрын
I like your vlog content about Japanese culture, Aniki. More power to this channel. May your subscribers grow more also your Patreons subs. More money more content! 🎉
@LynnHermione2 ай бұрын
ruling the guy's death suicide then giving the wife 20 years of protection is the most blatant tell ive ever seen
@eroche129 ай бұрын
Great video. Thanks! 2021 Family is a great film too
@nachoconazodiablo12342 ай бұрын
Another one to recommend would be Takeshi Kitano's Ryuzo and the seven henchmen. Really enjoy that movie!
@whitegylden9 ай бұрын
Awesome video! I will definitely check out a few of the movies you recommended 🙏 😃
@Von_D5 ай бұрын
Thanks for the primer. I've been wanting to get into yakuza films ever since I played 龍が如く0.
@pauliedibbs90289 ай бұрын
NAILED IT!
@chibikim779 ай бұрын
Drunken Angel was my fave movie. I watched it on Criterion Channel which starred the legendary Toshiro Mufune. Well worth watching.
@BreadTherian6669 ай бұрын
Kitano is awesome! A request: and japanese police stories? There must be some proper heroes standing up to the yakuza
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
I'll see what i can find! A video focused on the Police would be super interesting I think
@SigIntSpctr10 ай бұрын
Love the topic Edit: After watching, I am curious if there are any more connections between the actors in the RGG/Yakuza series and Yakuza movies? From what I know, the trio of Dojima lieutenants in Yakuza 0 were all famous actors from Japanese cinema, for example.
@NachtKaiser6669 ай бұрын
Indeed, a lot of the actors chosen by RGG Studios are movie actors. While I think many would qualify as B-movies actors, they still have a face well known to Japanese gangster movies. For example Takeuchi Riki who played Awano in Yakuza 0 was the one I was the most familiar with since he appeared in a lot of the earlier Takashi Miike films. He was in the 1999 movie Dead or Alive versus Aikawa Show who played Takasugi in Yakuza 5, but once you start digging, you'll find that a lot of them appeared together. They do feature mostly actors from the 80s and 90s as they're not too old, yet popular enough for the genre to be featured. It's quite interesting to see where they'll go in the future now that Infinite Wealth will feature Daniel Dae Kim and Danny Trejo, we'll possibly see more international crossover.
@ze39349 ай бұрын
@@NachtKaiser666 riki takeuchi Yakuza Demooooon 🤌
@SigIntSpctr9 ай бұрын
@@NachtKaiser666 Appreciate the answer, thank you. So maybe this would be a great topic for a next video
@jeremybeezy9 ай бұрын
Minbo is one of my favorite movies of all time.
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
I see you're a man of culture 🔥
@nathanstuart94609 ай бұрын
Great beginners guide! shame there was no mention of the Ninkyo genre and it's fascinating early reception, or the deep roots of the Jitsuroku genre and I feel like some REALLY important names were missed out (Ozawa,Yamashita,Nakajima, Taoka and his son etc) but I'm guessing time restraints were a factor there. Also I feel like Toei abandoning the genre in the early 90's isn't actually true, it just moved to V-Cinema.where it was still WILDLY popular.
@nathanstuart94609 ай бұрын
Also there's plenty of info out there about Shundo, but it's rather divisive.
@nathanstuart94609 ай бұрын
Itami's death is highly questionable too and there is much more evidence available in Japan, the Western information is skewed heavily towards Yakuza involvement and ignores the extra suicide notes elsewhere, the Goto-gumi troubles etc...
@rickricardu9 ай бұрын
Now is time go looking for places to watch this long list (subtitled).
@giantred9 ай бұрын
Interesting as always :) Out of curiosity, would it be possible to someday do something about the bōsōzuku/ the bōsōzuku to yakuza pipeline?
@anikihistory9 ай бұрын
I had that on my topics list since the very beginning! Might as well do that after the next Samurai vid i guess 💭
@Brianfilms6 ай бұрын
thank you for this
@lapolicedelapensee70479 ай бұрын
Nice, as always. ;)
@CinefreekProductions7 ай бұрын
If I had to recommend any good yakuza films that have come out in the last 10 years, it would the "Wolves" series that was produced by Toei studios. "The Blood of Wolves" and "The Last of The Wolves" are solid Jitsuroku inspired films that are worth checking out. Unfortunately Blood is only available for streaming on AMC+ in the states and Last has not been released yet internationally.
@EpilepticHouseplant7 ай бұрын
Iichi-san! Do the candle trick!
@AA-sg1si7 ай бұрын
Shozo Hirono!
@ise34329 ай бұрын
make a video about the yakuza influence on the comedy scene in japan
@SidewaysBurnouts5 ай бұрын
After mentioning "Battles w/o honor and Humanity" "Street Mobster" and "Graveyard of Honor" I feel like thats the holy trinity of yakuza movies. i have seen alot of violence up close and fukasaku gets the tension and insanity of dudes in a room together who know its about to kick off and stressing it. The way he films fights is super realistic but i always wish somebody would redub the gunfire because they sound like "pew pew" instead of a good old american 357 magnum sound. I love the first "Outrage" movie but i feel like "Cold Fish" the japanese "Unforgiven" remake, "Vengance is mine" and some classic sukiban movies like "Girl Boss Guerilla" "Sex and Fury" "Terrifying Girls High School" and "Female Convict Scorpion" series should get honorable mention. I know girl gangs, pinky violence, period gambler films and meiji era yakuza films are a slightly different genre. Honorable mention, most insane japanese movie ever. "Shoguns Joy of Torture 2."
@SidewaysBurnouts5 ай бұрын
im surprised you didnt mention Miike, Dead or Alive, Deadly Outlaw Rekka and Ichi the Killer were the first yakuza movies i remember non nerds and japan obcessed wierdos knowing about.
@rogerr.85077 ай бұрын
I liked the movie Young Boss Takeshi, the hero quits being in the navy to take over the family business
@kevinbourke18479 ай бұрын
Yakuza and anime/manga
@bar-1studios8 ай бұрын
I think a major reason that Yakuza and gangsters so often portray these groups in a heroic, or at least honorable, light is that the people paying for the propaganda rarely want to be the object of scorn in it 😊
@bar-1studios8 ай бұрын
Toes into American cinema, which was first bankrolled by theater sorts. Always a risky business venture, Vaudeville was hand in hand from the early days with money launderers and loan sharks. A guess the habits were the same no matter where you are.
@Alexander-Kurtz10 ай бұрын
Takeshi Kitano Yakuza movies are awful and grotesque, although I can understand why foreigners may enjoy his films, he has always been playing the sensationalistic borderline card. Takeshi is a shock value director, he relies on sheer violence and brutality, but his scenarios are shallow as hell, lacking depth in character, consistence and originality. Nikkatsu and Kadokawa also produced and distributed a large number of Yakuza films. To be honest, most of the best Yakuza movies are unknown to foreign audiences.
@hicham12ful14 күн бұрын
You make too many judgmental statements without backing them with evidence. Additionally, there is incorrect information, such as saying Takeshi Kitano's movie "Violent Cop" was a massive success at the box office. There are also reckless statements, like claiming the Yakuza involvement was the definitive reason why the genre lost popularity.
@Nepidemicofmannequins9 ай бұрын
🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶
@bar-1studios8 ай бұрын
A Family had a wildly different take on Yakuza in cinema, I thought. More pitiable than anything else. Portraying the original meaning of the term, "A bad hand". People who got the short end of the stick from day 1.