Tokyo Drifter

Many summaries of TOKYO DRIFTER excitedly the describe the 1966 film as an infectious stew of several cinematic genres and styles.  One even (inexplicably) invoked the name of Russ Meyer.  This being a somewhat flashy entry in '60s Japanese cinema the connections to and influences on Quentin Tarantino were widely discussed.   I suppose I can see all of this, and why the movie is highly regarded.  Criterion released it as one of their first DVDs back in '99.  What I can't do is pretend that it was not a "meh" experience for me.  A frustratingly and curiously flat motion picture.

The style is there, and refreshingly, not as garish as in other films (including QT's).  The opening scene is in black and white, bathed in a blindingly harsh bright pallate.  Almost like a dream.  A man is beaten down by several others in a railway yard.  Tetsu (Tetsuya Watari) is that man, a former hitman for a defunct yakuza.  But he remains loyal to his old boss, Kurata, who has also given up on his criminal ways.  But Otsuka, a syndicate rival, whose men did their dirty work on Tetsu, wants the young man to join his gang.  Of course he refuses and will find himself wandering Japan, the drifter of the film's title.

Tetsu is pursued by an assassin and eventually sheltered by a friend of his boss's. Loyalty is tested, betrayals are carried out.  But also, reconsiderations of nefarious orders at the last minute show that honor and trust are not entirely dead.   Will this be characteristic of those trusted the most? Along with yearnings to "go straight", these are salient questions in yakuza cinema.   Will a loving woman be left behind because a wanderer can have no one by his side?

As stated, the style is always present (bold colors, ornate shot composition) in TOKYO DRIFTER but never goes over the top.  Director Seijun Suzuki maintains a subdued, at times somber tone, even during a barroom fracas that manages to pay homage to/rib the American Western (as does the entire film, really).  The fights and gun battles play more in a theatrical than cinematic style, causing some wags to feel the blocking was a bit sub-par for this sort of film.  The battle choreography seems a bit rudimentary compared to other films.  So what sort of picture is TOKYO DRIFTER?  More like a pop-art, avant-garde exercise, long on mood but perhaps not emotional enough.

Maybe that was the problem I had with it.  The film never developed the characters to my satisfaction.  Early scenes get bogged down by a subplot involving particularly complex real estate dealings/scams.  There could be some depth to the relationships among the characters and while they are not buried under any overt flash, a certain hollowness prevades.