American Yakuza

American Yakuza

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Movie Reviews of American Yakuza

Movie Review: Honor, loyalty, trust
Summary: 5 Stars

What sets this film apart from the usual "mob" or "chop-socky" fare, is the focus of the film; how an agent can go so deeply undercover that he loses his way, and identifies completely with his "targets." This has been handled before; undoubtedly the best film of its kind has got to be Al Pacino's "Donnie Brasco," co-staring Johnny Depp. But "Brasco" had the advantage of two stellar stars at the top of their form, and a story, no matter how incredible it seemed at times, that was based on real events.

The main strength of "American Yakuza," and in my humble opinion the reason the film will either work for you or won't, are the performances of, and the developing relationship between, the two main characters, played by Viggo Mortensen, and Ryo Ishibashi.

Mortensen plays FBI Agent David Brandt, playing ex-con and hardened criminal, Nick Davis, while Ishibashi plays senior Yakuza lieutenant "Chui" Sawamoto. Brandt's working in a warehouse, driving a forklift truck, but his real job, as unlikely as it may see - what with him being a blond Caucasian an' all, the FBI must have been all out of Japanese agents that week! - is to somehow infiltrate the Tendo crime family, who use the warehouse as a front for their nefarious activities.

A perfect opportunity presents itself when Brandt practically stumbles into an attempted "hit" on the head of the family itself, Isshin Tendo. In helping foil the hit he directly saves the life of Sawamoto, Tendo's right-hand-man, and nurses him back to health in a rat-hole motel room. Once he's sure Sawamoto is going to live, he makes a call which brings the surviving Yakuza running, guns drawn and trigger fingers twitching, to reclaim their compatriot. Brandt wisely watches the action from a diner opposite the building, a move that undoubtedly stops him ending up as co-lateral damage!

Sawamoto now owes Brandt/Davis his life, and slowly brings him into the Yakuza organization, putting him into increasingly responsible and stressful situations, testing his newfound friend. But all is not wine and roses in the Yakuza family; some of Sawamoto's underlings are not at all happy with their boss bringing the American "gaijan" into the fold. He has to prove himself, and this he does, slowly but surely, `til he is at last accepted as a full member of the Tendo family.

As Brandt becomes more and more accepted by the Yakuza, and increasingly drawn into their ethos of honor and duty, he finds himself more and more at odds with the actions and plans of his bosses in the FBI. They make a strategic alliance with the Mob; in as much as they won't interfere to stop the Mob taking out the Yakuza... where will Brandt's loyalties lie? This is the central question of the film. As I said before, the relationship between Brandt and Sawamoto is what makes or breaks this film; Mortensen and Ishibashi give the parts their all.

The basic set-up is interesting, a kind of Mexican Standoff, the FBI, the Mob, and the Yakuza. And the way each group is portrayed brings a smile to the lips; the FBI is, in turns, stupid and duplicitous, the Mob are loud, back-slapping, cigar-chomping, foulmouthed scum - no doubt from "New Joisey!" - and the Yakuza? The Yakuza are cool! They wear really sharp black suits and white shirts, they're well groomed, they have a genuine code of honor and duty they live and die by, they are unfailingly polite to each other, and when Sawamoto verbally lashes out at subordinates who fail him, you just know its gotta hurt!

The film is well constructed, with more than a nod towards John Woo in the action scenes; double fisted gunplay and slow-mo shots of spent cartridges dropping to the floor. There's a romantic sub-plot that works well in the context of the story, and one particular scene where the camera swoops through a set of double doors into a white-draped room for a Yakuza ceremony that is really quite beautifully done. The final scene, after the obligatory climactic gun battle, is unexpectedly moving. There is much to enjoy in this perfect little jewel of a B Movie that aspires to be so much more, and I recommend it highly.

PLEASE NOTE: There is nothing in the "Technical Information" section of the Amazon review, or on the DVD case itself, about the Aspect Ratio of this film. It is presented in Full Screen, 1.33:1, although it doesn't appear to have been Panned `n' Scanned.