A triple-crossing crime actioner from master studio craftsman Suzuki that sharpened the critical focus on his thrilling devil-may-care filmmaking style.
Review #2,705
Dir. Seijun Suzuki
1963 | Japan | Action, Crime, Mystery | 92 min | 2.35:1 | Japanese
NC16 (passed clean) for some nudity
Cast: Jo Shishido, Misako Watanabe, Tamio Kawachi
Plot: When a mysterious stranger muscles into two rival yakuza gangs, Tokyo’s underworld explodes with violence.
Awards: –
Distributor: Nikkatsu
Accessibility Index
Subject Matter: Moderate – Yakuza Underworld
Narrative Style: Slightly Complex
Pace: Normal
Audience Type: Slightly Mainstream
Viewed: Oldham Theatre (as part of Asian Film Archive’s Seijun Suzuki Retrospective)
Spoilers: No
The perpetually scowling Jo Shishido plays Mizuno, a rugged street thug with strategic intelligence that far exceeds that of the people whom he hangs out with.
Never shying away from a fight, Mizuno is an enemy and ally all at once as he pits two yakuza bosses against each other in a triple-crossing agenda to find out who killed his best friend.
Youth of the Beast is like a modern Yojimbo (1961), as Mizuno’s cunning ability to sweet talk out of any dangerous scenario becomes crucial to his survival.
More importantly, he is the centrifuge of the entire film, taking everyone for a spin in the hope that the truth will reveal itself. He is not always lucky but he takes his chances.
“Just shut up and watch.”
Plot-wise, it may be at times convoluted, but this is a wildly entertaining crime actioner from master studio craftsman Seijun Suzuki. It was also the film that sharpened the critical focus on his devil-may-care filmmaking style.
Being so skilled and prolific, much of his work with Nikkatsu in the 1960s became feats of derring-do, to the point that Youth of the Beast felt like the product of a filmmaker who had become bored with the genre but went on to amuse himself by playing with its conventions.
It also doesn’t care about what you think and treats moments of absurdity as dark humour or artful mise-en-scene, such as the scene where Mizuno engages in a battle with several thugs whilst upside-down, or when he nonchalantly sets someone’s hair on fire with an aerosol can.
Youth of the Beast is a thrilling and funny take on the underworld of crime, as if John Woo met Buster Keaton in Japan. It is also a good place to start if you are new to Suzuki’s filmography.
Grade: B+
Trailer:
Music:
Eternality Tan 