Between 1998 & 2001, Takashi Miike’s prolific nature gained him worldwide notoriety with his V-cinema run. Audition, Ichi the Killer, Dead or Alive, and the Happiness of the Katakuri’s earned him legions of fans worldwide. Even if he isn’t quite as productive as he used to be, he still manages to release a few films each year. His work has been more accessible of late: adding comic-book movies, videogame adaptations and period films to his impossibly prolific filmography. With the UK release of Yakuza Apocalypse, Takashi Miike is stepping away from his current career trajectory to return to his old stomping grounds.
Kageyama (Hayato Ichihara) looks up to the local Yakuza boss, as do many other townspeople – the boss, Lily Franky (Genyo Kamiura), looks after his town like a Father would their child. Upon joining the clan, Kageyama climbs the ranks to a trusted position by the boss’s side, one of the many destinations on the path to being the sort of man he aspires to be. Then Yayan Ruhian (The Raid) turns up dressed akin to geeky stereotypes of years gone by, joined by a Cronenbergian gun-wielding, Jacobean ruff-wearing hoodlum. The arrival of that duo sees the brutal murder of Kageyama’s boss. With the Young Yakuza in the vicinity, he learns of his boss’s true nature by having his detached head sink its teeth into his neck – he wasn’t just a Yakuza but a Yakuza Vampire.
Through Yamaguchi’s script, Miike invokes stop animated oddness, Monster Movies and more on the way. As eccentric as Miike is, there is one core value – Kageyama’s coming of age. Being a Yakuza has its own rules, so expect the same as the Yakuza Vampires. Civilian blood is delicious, but dining on it isn’t allowed, whereas Yakuza blood smells and tastes disgusting, and it is okay. Even with a disembodied head delivering this advice, the result is catastrophic for the town, with the entire civilian body turned thanks to Kageyama’s inability to deal with the hunger. Unfortunately, the town becomes packed with scores of hyper-exaggerated Yakuza from all walks of life – while very silly, there’s a point to this comedic turn. What is the value of the Yakuza when there are no people?
Yakuza Apocalypse is indefinably idiosyncratic and openly embraces its weirdness, unconcerned whether it wins fans or not. While I got on board with what Miike was selling, many may find this overkill or, dare I say it, annoying. And for me, that is as punk as cinema gets.
As absurd as Yakuza Apocalypse has been thus far, I have barely touched upon the bigger picture. Even with a scene as odd as a transformation that has a meek child physically tearing the hair from their head to reveal a tight Yakuza cut. As wacky and funny a scene as that is, the realms of possibility are still within touching distance – just about. However, when the ‘world’s most dangerous terrorist’ turns up and it’s a man in a frog outfit, any notion of normality is left in the dust. We are in the territory of Japanese surrealism – manga-style.
The oddest part of the whole film is the ending, a scene that has caused some consternation. And, to be fair, it’s entirely understandable. Miike and his eager cast and crew have evoked the likes of Godzilla, Ray Harryhausen, and the Shaw Brothers’ vast filmography, yet after all that, it heads back to the more comfortable hues of the Yakuza film. Events escalate to Hayato Ichihara and Yayan Ruhian having a no-nonsense fight: a scene which eschews the martial arts to have two men taking turns punching each other in the face as hard as they can. While anti-climactic, it is the purest expression of one man testing his fighting spirit against another man I may have seen. Watch any puroresu (Japanese pro wrestling) match to see this sort of violent One-upmanship in action. Fair enough, it sits weirdly with kaiju monsters and vampires, but such is manga comedy surrealism. Unpredictability, thy name is Yakuza Apocalypse.
Miike is having fun, and while a bit much at two hours, the goalposts are in such a constant state of flux that the film never stops still for long enough to become boring. As admirable as this approach to filmmaking can be, such overkill will always be overwhelming – whether prepared or not. Yakuza Apocalypse is indefinably idiosyncratic and openly embraces its weirdness, unconcerned whether it wins fans or not. While I got on board with what Miike was selling, many may find this overkill or, dare I say it, annoying. And for me, that is as punk as cinema gets.
YAKUZA APOCALYPSE IS OUT NOW ON MANGA ENTERTAINMENT BLU-RAY
