The Bad Boss (1968)
The first in what would become Toei's most successful, longest-running bosozoku film series. It lasted from 1968 till 1972 through sixteen films.
The first in what would become Toei's most successful, longest-running bosozoku film series. It lasted from 1968 till 1972 through sixteen films.
When Omuro Yahachi of the Omuro family is selected as Mutsumikai Soke's successor, the conflict between the Kitakyushu and Wakamatsu begins.
A barkeeper saves a Yakuza boss' life and thus makes his way up in the organization. However, his fear of nothing soon causes problems.
A yakuza search for his past
The private eye of Shinjuku Yokubo Tantei is a lone wolf, lush, and loser but has kept his integrity in a dirty, dangerous world.
The adventures of a blind, gambling masseur and master swordsman. Zatoichi targets a yakuza-controlled village, because war with a neighbouring town's smaller gang is brewing.
Returning to the village where a year before he had killed Hirate, a much-admired opponent, Zatoichi encounters another swordsman and former rival in love.
A biker gang seeks revenge on a sheriff and his family after their women are searched for drugs in a way that's not very orderly... or, uh, sanitary. An original X rating due to rampant nudity and sleaze kept this off of most rental shelves during the video revolution. All subsequent bootleg DVDs have been sourced from a very rare Dutch VHS release, which was the only known release of this film on home video.
Philo takes part in a bare knuckle fight – as he does – to make more money than he can earn from his car repair business. He decides to retire, but when the Mafia come along and arrange another fight, he's pushed into it. A motorcycle gang and an orangutan called Clyde all add to the 'fun'.
Tension continues at the Kyowakai headquarters. Kawatani, Himuro, and Tamura are unable to hide their anger and confusion at the events that occur one after another, such as Shibuya's death and a series of absentees from meetings. Meanwhile, in Kobe, a new anti-chivalry group is starting to move. However, Baba, who plays the role of chairman and does not know about Shibuya's death, postpones the official raising of the company.
A Professional sniper, Ryo has executed so many missions with his partner, Narushima. But Ryo is caught in between a multitude of emotions, when he realizes that his newest target will be an old acquaintance of his.
The story deals with a juvenile delinquent gang surviving through petty thievery. However, everything gets screwed up when they accidentally steal big bucks from the Yakuza.
Takemiya Union Tōjō-gumi Wakagashira Yasuda (Hitomi Matsuda) retaliates against the Kansai-based Myōjin-kai by attacking their office after an assassination attempt on Union chairman Shimamura (Shunsuke Kariya). Joined by Yamashina-gumi Wakagashira Kiryu (Yoshiyuki Yamaguchi), the two succeed and pledge to work as brothers without an official oath, dedicating themselves to their organizations and the Union. The Union faces upheaval with Shimamura's retirement announcement and the loss of his son, Katsuto (Hitoshi Ozawa). The leadership race narrows to Tōjō (Hiroyuki Watanabe), Yasuda's boss, and Yamashina (Masahiro Noguchi), Kiryu's boss. Just as Yasuda’s casino operation thrives, a police raid confiscates all earnings and forces its closure. In desperation, Yasuda turns to a certain man (Naoto Takenaka) for help.
Yasuda (Hitomi Matsuda), the Wakagashira of the Takemiya Union Tōjō-gumi, infiltrates the hideout of the Yamashina-gumi's Sakazaki (Junichi Kawamoto), who had been secretly engaged in organ trafficking. Yasuda tries to extract the truth from Sakazaki, but is killed by Detective Hyūga from the Organized Crime Division (Marubō). The blame is pinned on Yasuda, leading to his arrest. Two years later... In Yasuda's absence, the boss of the Tōjō-gumi, Tōjō (Hiroyuki Watanabe), is assassinated by a hitman from the Myōjin-kai. The situation changes drastically. Nikaidō (Tarō Kawano) pressures Yasuda to reestablish his oath of allegiance, but Yasuda firmly refuses. Frustrated by Yasuda's response, Nikaidō makes a certain proposal to the union's chairman, Shimamura (Shunsuke Kariya).
Joe Huff is a tough, loner cop with a flair for infiltrating dangerous biker gangs. The FBI blackmail Huff into an undercover operation that entails infiltrating The Brotherhood – a powerful Mississippi biker gang linked in the murder of government officials as well as dealing drugs with the mafia.
An early Okamoto yakuza film, though it's not in the Underworld series (along with The Last Gunfight and The Big Boss) despite being alternatively known as "Death of the Boss." While Okamoto did not write this film and took on the project because he was assigned and "just doing [his] job" according to an interview with Chris Desjardins in Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film, he did express a general excitement about working in action cinema (which shows through in this film's energy.)
A lethal assassin for a secret Chinese organisation, who sheds tears of regret each time he kills, is seen swiftly and mercilessly executing three Yakuza gangsters by a beautiful artist. She is captivated by the grace of his kill and later falls in love with him. An intense power struggle for the leadership of the Yakuza Clans ensues as they seek vengeance for the death of their leader.
Luka Banjanin is an unemployed young man living with his parents in Belgrade. He hangs out with few devoted friends who, like him, are yet to find place in a society that discarded young intellectuals. He plays saxophone and dreams about going to Oktoberfest, the annual beer festival in Munich, but he's being unable to get passport because of a smaller drug incident he had in the past. Totally careless about his long-term girlfriend, he suddenly falls for a mysterious woman who seems to appear in the same places as him, and then vanishes as quickly as possible. Believing that he's at the wrong place at the wrong time, Luka wanders from one misadventure to another, gradually losing the contact with reality and living out his own Oktoberfest in his mind.
Kensuke Sonomura directs the legendary Hitoshi Ozawa in this ultimate V-Cinema actioner. Kaiko City is plagued with poverty and crime. When a corrupt businessman decides to run for mayor and starts eliminating opponents from the rival mafia, a former police captain serving time for murder is secretly released and put in charge of a special task force to arrest him.
Once again, director Shunichi Kajima and star Takanori Jinnai are teaming up to create a new type of yakuza film that stylishly depicts the short but vibrant life of legendary urban yakuza Takashi Hanagata.
An assassin is shot by her ruthless employer, Bill, and other members of their assassination circle – but she lives to plot her vengeance.