Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 12, 2025

They say that truth is stranger than fiction, but the somewhat convoluted history of Hokuriku Proxy War might suggest that fiction is stranger than truth that is stranger than fiction, at least in terms of the story offered in the film being ostensibly based on real life, and then rather bizarrely leading to some unexpected real life (and/or death) developments in the wake of its release. As is discussed in some of the interesting supplements on this disc, while literally beginning with an onscreen "this film is a work of fiction" disclosure, Hokuriku Proxy War was supposedly another "ripped from the headlines" enterprise, a la (and evidently designed to directly compete with) Battles Without Honor and Humanity. In this particular case, though, while some of Kinji Fukasaku's trademark framings and frenetic pace are certainly still on tap, as weird as it may sound, Hokuriku Proxy War often plays like whatever the yakuza equivalent of a farce might be. That is evident from the opening image, which offers hapless crime "boss" Mr. Yasuhara (Kō Nishimura) buried up to his head in snow (the snowy climate of much of this film is one of its most distinctive presentational elements). Yasuhara is being threatened by Kawada Noburo (Hiroki Matsukata), who comes perilously close to driving over Yasuhara's head with a Jeep in order to "persuade" Yasuhara to make good on a deal that was promised to Kawada.

That's just the first skirmish in a turf war that ultimately includes an interloper from Osaka named Kanai (Sonny Chiba), and if all of the intramural and/or internecine warfare that is on tap throughout this wending tale is more or less "traditional" Fukasaku, the tone of this film is really rather remarkable, and perhaps a bit unsettlingly so. The story is so full of cartoonish characters and frankly characterizations that it may be hard to accept the narrative as anything other than a kind of live action Chuck Jones enterprise. This is especially true of characters like Yasuhara, who is basically the "coyote" to Kawada's "road runner", though that said, it might be further joked that both Kawada and Yasuhara are themselves the "coyote" to Kanai's "road runner". As the cover of this release mentions and some of the supplements get into, this film does have a somewhat unusual emphasis on female characters, however, including two played by Yumiko Nogawa and Yoko Takahashi.

That said, if the inclusion of two fairly strong and central females makes this at least a bit unusual, it's the male side of the equation that will probably generate the most visceral response. Both Chiba and Matsukata have feral moments throughout the story that genuinely energize things, even if the jet black humor of some of the proceedings is never far from the surface.

Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Horukriku Proxy War is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Radiance Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.36:1. Radiance doesn't tend to provide a ton of technical information on their releases, and the insert booklet contains only the following generic transfer notes:

Hokuriku Proxy War was transferred in high definition by Toei Company, Ltd. and supplied to Radiance Films as a high definition digital file.

That minimal information aside, the "fine print" on this release's cover also offers a "4K restoration by Toei Company" as a final data point. This is a really appealing looking transfer that has an intentionally gritty look, including at times a pretty thick grain field. Detail levels are typically very good to excellent throughout, especially when Fukasaku isn't toying with cameras manically moving hither and yon. Fine detail on some of the thickly textured winter outfits is precise and virtually palpable at times. The palette is very nicely suffused for the most part, though I felt flesh tones were just a bit on the brown side at times. There's good delineation in a variety of bright white tones in the ubiquitous outdoor snowy scenes.

Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hokuriku Proxy War features LPCM 2.0 Mono audio in the original Japanese. This is a nicely balanced track that may occasionally reveal just a tiny bit of background hiss and/or noise, but which supports both a glut of ambient environmental effects and Toshiaki Tsushima's score without any issues. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Yoko Takahashi (HD; 15:51) talks about this film and her collaborators in this 2024 piece. Subtitled in English.


• Koji Takada (HD; 18:42) offers the film's writer discussing the project in 2024. Subtitled in English.


• The Hokuriku Proxy War Case (HD; 14:36) is a really interesting overview by Yakuza film historian Akihiku Ito, where this supposedly "based on real life" story then actually turned into a bizarre assassination modeled on one in the film. Subtitled in English.


• Trailer (HD; 3:21)

Additionally, Radiance provides another nicely appointed insert booklet. There are three archival essays by Muneo Nakamura, Motohiko Kano and Isao Fujisawa, along with cast and crew listing and the above mentioned minimal technical information. The keepcase sleeve is reversible and Radiance's trademark Obi strip is also included.

Hokuriku Proxy War Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I admittedly responded to several key moments in Hokuriku Proxy War with a decided, "Did they mean that to be funny?", and those expecting something largely akin to Battles Without Honor or Humanity may have a similar reaction. Hokuriku Proxy War is definitely its own "animal", so to speak, and as the Ito supplement in particular gets into, some of its "meta" context may be as fascinating as the film itself. Technical merits are solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.