Yakuza deka (1970)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Yukio Noda

Writer:

Fumio Konami (writer)

Release Date:

23 May 1970 (Japan)

Genre:

Crime | Action

Cast

Tetsurô Tanba
Bin Amatsu
Ryohei Uchida
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jaianto Baba	...	Himself
Sonny Chiba
Kôji Hio	...	Kurihara
Asao Uchida

Also Known As:

Gangster Cop (International: English title)
Yakuza Deka: Secret Police (Australia) (DVD title)

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:15 (cut) | Australia:MA | New Zealand:R16

Company:

Toei Tokyo

More of an action film than a Yakuza, but a good one.

In most of his films, Sonny Chiba's acting skills are usually overshadowed by his fistfights, and "Yakuza Deka" might not be an exception, however it still manages to work as a drama whilst still keeping Chiba's trademark violence. The essential story about an undercover cop isn't exactly anything interesting or original, however Chiba's unshakable screen presence burns through the film and as usual it feels dull when he isn't on screen.

That said, there is a lot of skill behind the camera in Yukio Noda, who keeps everything moving at a cracking pace and handles the action very well, even with the obviously low budget. The film climaxes with a hugely entertaining off road car mêlée, so while not impressing anyone with its story the film certainly excels itself in terms of action. There's plenty of well timed comic relief which gives the film a much lighter atmosphere than other films of the same ilk.

Overall, this may not be for the "serious" Yakuza fan, however it is a very entertaining hour and a half and certainly will not disappoint any Chiba fans, who as usual is the main attraction.