The Opening Statement
Equal parts spaghetti
western, Quentin Tarantino, Our Man Flint and Fellini
fantasy, Tokyo Drifter fills the senses like a psychedelic
acid trip through a carnival fun house. Large plot points are either
missing or glossed over, and that's okay. Like eating a meal of
Chicago-style Pizza followed by chocolate ice cream, Tokyo
Drifter may not be perfect, but it sure is
satisfying.
Seijun Suzuki became an employee if Nikkatsu
Studios because he made three times the amount his old studio paid
per picture. After toiling through their system for many years and
feeling unsatisfied, he began indulging his own desires to break out
of that system and develop movies that challenged himself and his
audience. As a result of this little rebellion, Suzuki was fired,
left to toil through television and independent productions where he
never recaptured the magic that created such interesting films as Tokyo Drifter and
Branded to Kill.
Given
several million yen, and ordered to "play it straight" by Nikkatsu,
Suzuki instead delivered Tokyo Drifter in 1966. The film
performs a high-wire act of unbelievable proportion, continually
stretching the boundary of believability while remaining
entertaining through and through. That the entertainment comes from
interesting color choices or camera angles and not from a dense or
twisted plot matter not, as the film IS entertaining, which is all
we could ask. To be sure, a plot is present, and it does have a
moral center of sorts, preaching that perhaps it is indeed better to
be self sufficient and independent rather than beholden to a person,
an organization, a belief system. But the plot is so full of holes
that it misses its mark often. Nevertheless, Tokyo Drifter
stands as a bold achievement in filmmaking from the mid 1960s and it
is presented here on DVD courtesy of The Criterion Collection, for
all to enjoy.
The Evidence
Tokyo Drifter
tells the story of Tetsu, the former right hand man to Kurata, a
Japanese yakuza Boss now gone straight. As the story opens, Tetsu is
wandering around the rail yards awaiting his death. Kurata calls him
back to work in order to battle a rival gang. Tetsu looks up to
Kurata as a father figure who has taught him everything he knows,
and so obliges him. As the film unfolds, several men of the rival
gang hunt Tetsu because he is seen as the lynchpin to destroying
Kurata.
Tetsu decides to leave Tokyo and Kurata because he
views that as the only option that will help Kurata deal with the
other gang. While in exile, Tetsu's loyalty is tested in many ways,
none of which are as severe as the test he must face after returning
to Tokyo.
As mentioned above, Suzuki leaves gaping holes in
the plot, but more than makes up for them with the style of the
film. Tetsu parades around in his trademark powder blue suit for
more than half the film. A primary set, used repeatedly throughout
the shoot is a nightclub made up in a stark yellow. There are
fascinating shots, such as the shot from showing two dead bodies
from 40 feet dead above a false ceiling, a floor level shot of Tetsu
kicking his gun across a floor, and one of the most interesting pans
I have ever seen tracking a car coming around a corner. It all winds
up being a bit disorienting at times, but still remains quite
fascinating.
Tetsu is a stone-faced killer with intelligence
to spare. He has figured many of the rival gang's plans before they
happen, but is blinded to his own betrayal by his loyalty. Tetsuya
Watari plays Tetsu nearly perfectly, with the fluid movement of a
dancer or large cat, he thwarts his foes while professing to remain
a reformed gangster early in the film. But, he loses his temper
wildly after being tested for a third time. Tetsu is one of the
reasons the film has so much style and grace.
The video and
audio of this disc are pretty amazing, all things considered. The
opening shot may scare you a bit, but it is clearly designed this
way. It is completely over-saturated and overexposed. The shot looks
more like a black and white cartoon than any kind of color film
stock. The sky and water are a bright white while figures are a
complete black, with nary a shade of gray in between. The rest of
the film was shot in a brightly lit color, to emphasize the stark
contrasts between good (powder blue suit) and evil (red shirt with
blacker than black sunglasses). The audio is a solid mono track
presented in the original Japanese with English subtitles optional.
Dialog is clearly intelligible and the few music scenes have a
decent dynamic range for the time period.
The Rebuttal
Witnesses
The big drawback to the film is clearly the missing
plot elements. Had the story been more complete, Tokyo
Drifter would have been raised to a classic along the lines of Seven Samurai. As it stands it is more of a curiosity in
terms of the style of the film, to be studied and enjoyed by a more
select group of filmgoers. It is hard to lay blame for the missing
plot points at the feet of Suzuki. As we learn during the one extra
included on this disc, an interview with the man himself, the budget
for these films was typically fairly low. But, probably the most
important contributing factor to the lack of plot was the
extraordinarily tight shooting schedule afforded the typical
Nikkatsu production. Average shooting time was 25 days, with an
additional three days allowed for editing and sound mixing. It is
rather incredible that a film like this could be developed in such a
short time frame.
The Closing Statement
I highly
recommend Tokyo Drifter to fans of film and DVD. If you are
not familiar with Seijun Suzuki's work, I would probably rent this
disc or Branded to Kill prior to a purchase. It may be a bit
of an acquired taste, but what a taste it is!!!
The
Verdict
Criterion is, as usual, acquitted of all charges for
bringing Tokyo Drifter to market. Sure, a commentary track or
two would have been a nice addition to this disc, but it stands
pretty well on its own. Suzuki is thanked for a fascinating vision
and creative camera shots, especially having done so in such a short
time frame. Case Dismissed.
From DVD
VERDICT
<
BACK