Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 9, 2019

It’s always great to have a Jasper Sharp commentary to listen to on releases of Asian cinema fare, and Sharp provides another informational smorgasbord with his analysis of Yakuza Law, another near delirious effort from the often provocative Teruo Ishii. One of the things Sharp mentions early in his commentary is a reminder to fans that the very word yakuza consists of three phonemes which in turn indicate “eight, nine, three”, one of the worst possible hands in a Japanese gambling game. That allusion may tend to point out as well as anything the risk anyone takes in either becoming a yakuza or (perhaps even more so) daring to cross a gang member. As such, the opening credits montage of Yakuza Law plays like a “greatest hits” of sorts documenting all kinds of carnage visited on unfortunate victims who for one reason or another have run afoul of folks with some very energetic retribution strategies at their beck and call. While some of those graphic images are repeated (and in at least some cases, lengthened) later in the film, Yakuza Law also includes a number of other potentially squirm worthy moments that aren’t even hinted at in the early going. What’s kind of fascinating about all of this is that Ishii almost seems to be indulging in a kind of cheeky “the more things change, the more they stay the same” approach in that Yakuza Law spans vast time frames of several centuries, even if the feral tendencies of various gang members remain rather disturbingly constant.

Any lover of Japanese cult cinema already familiar with Teruo Ishii through such efforts as Horrors of Malformed Men and/or Blind Woman's Curse, will probably already be well aware that this particular auteur can bring a positively gonzo outlook to his films, but in this particular instance it’s tied rather graphically to elements that might be best summed up by the title of another Ishii film (and quasi-series), Shogun’s Joys of Torture. In other words, Yakuza Law is a film that virtually wallows in injuries being inflicted on various hapless souls, to the point that any narrative “through line” may be a moot point in a way.

That narrative “through line” contains a structural conceit in this film whereby all of the “joys of torture” being inflicted take place over three different time periods, though what exactly Ishii is trying to say in this regard frankly eluded me. It’s an arguably obvious point that yakuza can be violent, morally depraved sorts, but casting these vignettes over various eras, especially with regard to the last of the three different time periods, which is suddenly transported into near James Bond territory as the story wends its way toward “contemporary” (meaning late sixties) time, struck me as not particularly helpful. That said, the film's basic premise is simplicity itself: if you deign to break "yakuza law," you will undoubtedly pay a very painful price.

The opening credits montage provides a number of fanciful examples of this premise, with grotesque (erotic grotesque?) maimings, slashings and even burnings, and later escapades involve such “standards” as a pinkie being severed (and that’s not even the bad stuff in that particular “episode”). (My personal favorite in the opening montage is a guy who has become impaled on the teeth of a backhoe bucket. That must have taken some work.) Some of the practical effects may be giggle provoking to some, with some obvious rubber prosthetics at times and blood that virtually approaches “Hammer” levels of redness and viscosity. Perhaps because of the cartoonish if still disturbing violence, the film doesn’t even pretend to develop much in the way of an emotional tether to many characters, perhaps strangely even those being forced to experience untold horrors of physical punishment.

If the characters themselves may not ultimately hold a ton of interest (or at least emotional connection), Yakuza Law does offer Bunta Sugawara in the first (Edo set) vignette, Minoru Oki in the second (Meiji set) vignette, and Teruo Yoshida in the “modern day” third vignette, so there is plenty of star power here for genre aficionados. Ishii also utilizes his widescreen framings in a consistently interesting manner, giving the film some visual energy, if, that is, you’re not viewing it from behind masking hands due to the graphic blood and gore being depicted.

Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Yakuza Law is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. This is another Toei offering from Arrow that contains only pretty generic verbiage about the transfer in Arrow's insert booklet:

Yakuza Law is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and with its original mono sound. The film was remastered in high definition and supplied for this release by Toei Company, Ltd.

Some of the Toei provided material to Arrow has been at least a little lackluster at times, but to my eyes this is one of the nicer looking releases of a vintage Toei film. Though a tangential aside and not ultimately that important in terms of the overall presentation, and while still a little rough looking when compared to the bulk of this presentation, even the opening Toei masthead is not littered with scratches and noisy looking grain as in some other Toei high definition masters. Grain is still fairly heavy and even a bit "splotchy" looking on the logo, but reverts to a more natural look once the film begins, though I wondered if perhaps some judicious high frequency filtering may have been applied here, as grain isn't quite as gritty looking as I perhaps injudiciously expected it to. Densities are generally very good through the presentation, though the palette looked just slightly faded at times, with a somewhat brown or even yellowish undertone. Clarity is a bit variable, though it does appear that Ishii used diffusion filters a couple of times. The outdoor material really pops surprisingly well, with deeply blue skies and nicely lush green foliage. Fine detail levels are generally good as well, offering precise looks at the well done sets and costumes. There are really no major signs of damage or age related wear and tear. Grain resolution encounters no compression anomalies.

Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While completely serviceable and listenable, the LPCM Mono track here doesn't fare quite as well as the video element, with some slight crackling and noticeable distortion at higher amplitudes, including the very first "announcement" as the credits roll, and recurrently when the frequently kind of odd music reaches heights of delirium. Dialogue also occasionally encounters this same hurdle, but again generally when things become more intense. Otherwise, fidelity is fine and things sound decent if not absolutely perfect.

Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by Jasper Sharp


• Erotic Grotesque and Genre Hopping (1080p; 47:40) is described as being a rare archival interview with Teruo Ishii which has been newly edited for this release. Even supposedly "newly edited", this is a really interesting career spanning conversation that fans of the often controversial director will most likely really enjoy.


• Image Gallery (1080p; 2:00)

As usual, Arrow has also provided a nicely appointed insert booklet.

Yakuza Law Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even genre fans may find this particular Ishii entry on the odd side, but my hunch is for Ishii fans there's enough of his patented weirdness here that they'll find the film generally interesting if never completely captivating. The lunatic violence is never completely (and in some cases, frankly not even partially) believable, but it gives this film a kind of manic energy that is memorable, one way or the other. Video is generally solid, but audio encounters a few hurdles. As usual, Arrow has provided some nice supplements for those considering a purchase.