Far more synonymous with the Chanbara genre, Hideo Gosha brings his taste for the anarchic to the early 70s explosion in Yakuza movies. Cheap and popular, they became a dime a dozen in the late 60s, a taste which Japanese audiences would carry over into the new decade. Gone was the need for stoic, sword-wielding heroes that lived by a long-forgotten code, because these could now be seen on weekly television in the home. No, something based in a more relatable world, but with just as much of a fantastical aura around it. So the transition from the traditional Chanbara film (eg Sword of the Beast, Three Outlaw Samurai) was a simple one, but far greater than swapping swords for guns and Yakuza for Samurai, to set itself apart it needed something a bit brasher, a bit more violent.
TOEI’s Violent Streets (aka Violent City) is just that. Within moments of our cold open (involving a flamenco sequence that not only serves as our introduction into this world but also provides the score to these first steps into a blood-drenched world) we are given a distinct impression that not is all right and nobody is as they seem to be.
Noboru Andō is the personification of brooding menace. His composure in the midst of the violence is barely kept below the surface adds another level to similar films. Where Kinji Fukasaku’s Battles Without Honour and Humanity series went epic in scale, with a cast of characters so large it could fill its own phone book, Hideo Gosha instead brings everything up close and personal, there are no sneak attacks from unknown assailants here, you will see the whites of the eyes of the person that wants you dead as they slide their blade into your gut.
A great work by one of the great directors, Violent Streets falls somewhere between the Yakuza films of Kinji Fukasaku and films such as John Cassavetes’ The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie and Peter Yates’ The Friends of Eddie Coyle.
It’s this closed world that gives everything in Violent Streets a much greater intensity than many of its contemporaries. Whilst it does have a certain chaotic feel, it’s controlled chaos, only ever reaching the edge of control during its wild and often bloody fights. Even then, when the fighting subsides, the intensity remains. For instance, there is a scene later on that involves a conversation with our protagonist, Egawa (Noboru Andō) must meet with a former boss and his representative. Few words are said, but what is said pushes the characters closer to losing composure, all the while Hideo Gosha shifts focus between those involved to show the threat comes from those that say the least. It’s a mesmerising scene in a film that rarely meanders, instead allowing its characters to breathe in otherwise breathless situations.
Looking beyond the film itself for a moment, Eureka Entertainment once again delivers a top-quality product. From a gorgeous 2K restoration, an in-depth look at this film and the works of director Hideo Gosha by expert film critic Tony Rayns, along with contributions from Jasper Sharp and an essay by Tom Mes, Violent Streets gets the love and respect we’ve come to expect from one of the premiere distributors in the UK right now.
A great work by one of the great directors, Violent Streets falls somewhere between the Yakuza films of Kinji Fukasaku and films such as John Cassavetes’ The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie and Peter Yates’ The Friends of Eddie Coyle. Unique and familiar in equal measure, Violent Streets is an essential purchase for anyone with even the slightest interest in the Yakuza/Gangster genre.
Violent Streets is out now on Eureka Blu-Ray
