Sympathy for the Underdog

Brother

December 2000 •Japanese

A Japanese Yakuza gangster's deadly existence in his homeland gets him exiled to Los Angeles, where he is taken in by his little brother and his brother's gang.

Dolls

October 2002 •Japanese

Dolls takes puppeteering as its overriding motif, which relates thematically to the action provided by the live characters. Chief among those tales is the story of Matsumoto and Sawako, a young couple whose relationship is about to be broken apart by the former's parents, who have insisted their son take part in an arranged marriage to his boss' daughter.

Guard Dog

November 1997 •Japanese

A tough and violent battle ensues between Hikaru Gotokuji, who's been assigned as the bodyguard for a popular young entertainer, and the ex-mercenary who is aggressively intent on assassination.

Kill Bill: Vol. 1

October 2003 •English

An assassin is shot by her ruthless employer, Bill, and other members of their assassination circle – but she lives to plot her vengeance.

The Stranger by the Shore

September 2020 •Japanese

Abandoned after coming out, Shun befriends Mio just before he has to move. Years later, Mio returns with a confession. How will Shun feel?

Target

June 2009 •Japanese

A Professional sniper, Ryo has executed so many missions with his partner, Narushima. But Ryo is caught in between a multitude of emotions, when he realizes that his newest target will be an old acquaintance of his.

Untamagiru

April 1989 •Japanese

A magical realist story of the legendary Okinawan hero Untamagiru participating in efforts to form an independent Okinawa before the island was returned to Japan in 1972.

Oshidori kenkagasa

May 1957 •Japanese

Taxi 2

March 2000 •French

A cabdriver and a cop race to Paris to rescue a love interest and the Japanese minister of defense from kidnappers.

Black Rain

September 1989 •English

Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. However, in Japan he manages to escape, and as they try to track him down, they get deeper and deeper into the Japanese Mafia scene and they have to learn that they can only win by playing the game—the Japanese way.

The Symbol of a Man

July 1963 •Japanese

A Japanese intelligence officer faces personal crises in the years preceding the Manchurian conflict.

Falcon Rising

September 2014 •English

Chapman is an ex-marine in Brazil's slums, battling the yakuza outfit who attacked his sister and left her for dead.

Crying Freeman

April 1995 •English

A lethal assassin for a secret Chinese organisation, who sheds tears of regret each time he kills, is seen swiftly and mercilessly executing three Yakuza gangsters by a beautiful artist. She is captivated by the grace of his kill and later falls in love with him. An intense power struggle for the leadership of the Yakuza Clans ensues as they seek vengeance for the death of their leader.

Big Shots Die at Dawn

April 1961 •Japanese

Grown up son arrives home to learn his father, the newly elected mayor, has been assassinated. So he journeys down a path to find the assassin and gets involved with two opposing yakuza gangs.

The Mole Song: Final

November 2021 •Japanese

Reiji's final mission is to prevent the smuggling of 600 billion yen of drugs. For his mission, he gets on luxury passenger ship and he faces his strongest enemy to date.

Ambition Without Honor 2

June 1997 •Japanese

Tetsuya, a young yakuza, returns to his family after his adoptive father is wounded in an attack from a rival gang. In his battle against dishonorable enemies and corrupt yakuza politics, he makes an unlikely ally in a rebel cop.

Tattoo

April 2002 •German

Marc Schrader, a rookie cop caught red-handed with drugs in a police raid of an illegal rave, joins a homicide investigation conducted by Chief Inspector Minks. The victim is a naked young woman with the skin stripped off her back, killed as she staggered into traffic. As Schrader and Minks investigate the murder, the case is complicated by a finger found in the stomach of the victim. Forensic examination proves the finger belongs to Nobert Günzel, who was previously convicted of rape and assault. The police raid Günzel’s residence, and discover a blood-stained table with restraints and bits of human flesh in his basement. They also find video equipment and preserved, tattooed skin from the victim’s back. Soon, they found dead bodies buried in the garden. Günzel then goes missing.

Twittering Birds Never Fly: The Clouds Gather

February 2020 •Japanese

In the hyper-masculine criminal underworld, a masochistic high-ranking yakuza and his newly-assigned bodyguard become increasingly drawn to each other.

Sonatine

September 1993 •Japanese

Murakawa, an aging Tokyo yakuza tiring of gangster life, is sent by his boss to Okinawa along with a few of his henchmen to help end a gang war, supposedly as mediators between two warring clans. He finds that the dispute between the clans is insignificant and whilst wondering why he was sent to Okinawa at all, his group is attacked in an ambush. The survivors flee and make a decision to lay low at the beach while they await further instructions.

The Bad Boss

May 1968 •Japanese

The first in what would become Toei's most successful, longest-running bosozoku film series. It lasted from 1968 till 1972 through sixteen films.