TOKYO DRIFTER

Wow.

Just wow.

To say that TOKYO DRIFTER (1966) is like nothing you've ever seen before is to simultaneously employ an ancient, Social Security collecting cliche and to speak the plain, unvarnished truth. This film truly is one of a kind.

Ostensibly a Japanese Yakuza crime film, Seijun Suzuki's brilliant masterpiece mashes up multiple film genres. The whole film is cut to the beat of the French New Wave cinema movement, there are scenes that resemble Golden Age Hollywood musicals, and American Westerns are heavily referenced (there's a huge brawl in a Japanese night club that's been built to resemble an Old West saloon). When the hero, Phoenix Tetsu (Tetsuya Watari) crouches and drops to one knee during shoot-outs, he recalls James Bond's signature, similar movement during the gun-barrel opening of the 007 films. And let's not forget the insane shout-out to THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939). Yep, TOKYO DRIFTER starts out in crisp, noirish black and white before switching to the kind of day-glo color scheme that made the 1966 BATMAN TV show such delirious eye-candy. Cinematographer Shigeyoshi Mine drenches the screen with explosive color palettes. Everything, I mean everything is color coded from the costumes to the sets to the cars. Some scenes are shot with only one primary color (like the yellow night club sequences), while other scenes are such a riot of colors and hues, it looks like a paint factory exploded.

While the visuals are best watched behind a pair of cheap sun glasses, the narrative is, at times, completely incoherent. The jump cuts propel the action forward at a feverish pitch and there were several scenes that made me wonder, "did that really just happen?" The story involves Phoenix Tetsu's quest to protect his Yakuza boss, Kurata (Ryuji Kita) from rival mobsters who are out to gain an office building owned by the gangster. Yep, in this film, the Yakuza is more interested in real estate holdings and owning highly stylized night clubs than running drugs, prostitutes, gambling and other vices.

Like a Samurai warrior from ages past, Phoenix Tetsu must ultimately walk alone, devoid of a close relationship with the night club singer he loves and hunted by rival gangs. The action scenes are fast and furious and everything moves at such a breathless clip that a second viewing may be required for some viewers.

TOKYO DRIFTER is an absolutely must-see film. It's breathtaking in its' audacity and lets-try-anything sensibility and will absolutely blow you away.

Highest recommendation