According to the code of the gamblers, Tokijiro, though he dislikes killing, has to join in the fighting when afforded a night’s stay and meals at the home of a town boss. He will be tested again and again in the bloody tale.
Last month, Radiance Films released a Blu-ray™ of director Tai Katô’s “Eighteen Years in Prison.” Katô’s work has been sparsely seen. To help rectify this imbalance, Radiance is releasing another of his films this month on Blu-ray™, “Tokijiro: Lone Yakuza.”
The titular character, Tokijiro (Kinnosuke Nakamura), is a drifter/gambler traveling Japan with a recently met companion, Asa (Kiyoshi Atsumi), when the movie begins. Tokijiro refuses to help when asked by an innkeeper to perform a favor, causing Asa to attempt to fulfill the request on his own. Asa’s attempt does not go well.
Feeling guilty and responsible for Asa, Tokijiro complies when asked to perform a favor for his next host. The favor this time is killing the lone surviving member of a rival group, Sanzo (Chiyonosuke Azuma). As Sanzo dies, Tokijiro agrees to look after his wife, Okinu (Junko Ikeuchi), and son. The task proves hard to fulfill when his host continues to hunt Tokijiro and Okinu after they flee town.
Katô’s film is briskly paced. It’s short and to the point. My only complaint rests entirely on myself; I don’t know enough about Japanese culture to understand the intricacies of the plot. However, after diving into some of the included features (more on them below), I better understand the film and its time period. For example, “Eighteen Years in Prison” and “Tokijiro: Lone Yakuza” could use some historical context for audiences unfamiliar with the customs of the yakuza. The yakuza film genre is a cinematic blind spot that I’m slowly working to fill.
While the disc itself provides fine sound, with no distracting hisses or pops and clear dialogue, the picture is a bit messy. The included booklet states that the film was ‘transferred in High-Definition by Toei Co. Ltd and supplied to Radiance Films as a High-Definition digital file.’ Not very descriptive. From the look of it, I think it’s safe to say that this movie hasn’t had any remastering work done. The picture isn’t particularly clear and doesn’t look as textured or detailed as expected.
For the extras, Radiance has included the usual limited edition booklet, an interview with film critic Koushi Ueno, a visual essay on star Kinnosuke Nakamura, and a trailer. The booklet is probably the best feature — included in it is the essay “Dark Blue, with Splashes of Red” by Ivo Smits and a newly translated review from 1966 by Tetsuya Fukasawa. Smits’ essay is enlightening on the yakuza film, an excellent starting point for those not worried about film spoilers. The booklet’s included review is surprisingly negative. The on-the-disc interview with Ueno mostly came across as if he was explaining the movie’s plot. It’s a feature I’d recommend skipping.
Altogether, this is a worthwhile disc. The extras produced for the film might not be the best, but it’s nice to see under-the-radar works continue to be released on disc for audiences to rediscover. Although I didn’t quite click with this movie, I think it’s worth checking out, especially for those interested in cinema history.
Available on Limited Edition Blu-ray™ from Radiance Films August 27th
