Korô no chi

Kazuya Shiraishi pays homage to classic yakuza cinema is a film that promises much but fails to be any more than formulaic. Newbie cop Hoika (Tori Matsuzaka) is partnered with veteran-cum-legend Ogami (Koji Yakusho). Idealistic newcomer bumps up against pragmatic, corner-cutting realist - a combo we have seen in countless iterations. Both Matsuzaka and Yakusho inhabit the archetypes fully, and Yakusho is especially engaging. The challenge for this film is to revive the genre in a way that provides the comfort of the familiar, while surprising with new elements and directions. Unfortunately, the film only delivers on the former. The gang feuds, schlock violence, gaudy neon and chintzy interiors will tick many boxes. Some elements that could do with updating are left unreformed, most notably the lack of complexity in female characters. The talents of Yoko Maki are woefully under-utilized here. It's not a horrible film, but you might find yourself wishing you had spent your time re-visiting the classics rather than watch them re-hashed.

Superb performances, a rare film like they don't make anymore.

Has all the hallmarks of a classic.

Shot superbly also.

Pure enjoyment from beginning to end.

I have not read the novel but now I would like to.

'The Blood Of Wolves (2018)' is inspired by films such as 'Battles Without Honor And Humanity (1973)' and 'Shinjoku Triad Society (1995)', focusing on a rookie policeman who is partnered with a seasoned yet morally grey detective and tasked with preventing a gang war from igniting between Hiroshima's two most prominent gangs. The thing is basically concerned mainly with trying to decipher what side the detective is really on. Throughout the piece, he does some truly inappropriate things - including straight-up torturing suspects - but he always seems to have the right intentions, despite taking cash from numerous criminals along the way. He's an enigma, for sure, and his abrasive personality actually makes it rather hard to root for him a lot of the time. That's why our perspective character is an important inclusion; he gives us somebody to get behind and care about straight away. The protagonist isn't as interesting as his callous counterpart, for sure, but he's a good way of examining him, of coming to appreciate just what he represents. The plot that they're placed in is pretty complicated, with plenty of faceless names and nameless faces to remember, but it does a good job of keeping you engaged in-the-moment and never feels confusing, as such. What it does feel, however, is long. The pacing isn't exactly slow, but so much happens over the course of the piece that it actually feels much longer than it is. Some of it could perhaps have been nipped and tucked ever-so-slightly to make for a more consistently propulsive affair. Still, the film isn't boring. It's an interesting an entertaining thriller that takes a few unexpected turns and has several moments of surprisingly wince-inducing violence. It isn't something that's likely to stick in your memory for all that long, but it's an enjoyable experience nevertheless. 7/10.

I think the acting carried it. If you're not used to Japanese films it might seem a bit over the top, but that's a characteristic of the culture reflected in the film style. Overall this is a well-produced story with good characters. Side note: I didn't think the action was unrealistic-- as one reviewer commented -- but it puzzled me that so many cops and criminals were paralyzed with fear when confronted with a threat. That was the main flaw I noticed.

Korô no chi, internationally known as The Blood of Wolves, is a brutal gangster movie reminding of the Japanese V-Cinema era in the mid-nineties. This type of movie could have been made by prolific directors such as Mochizuki Rokuro, Miike Takashi or Kitano Takeshi.

The story revolves around brutal, non-conformist, lone wolf police officer Ogami Shogo and his conformist, intellectual and naive partner Hioka Shuichi. They investigate the disapperance of an accountant in the late eighties. It soon turns out that the accountant was involved in a yakuza clan and tried to steal money. Ogami Shogo uses violence, menaces and connections to investigate while his partner Hioka Shuichi is shocked by such procedures and rather tries to make sure his partner will get suspended. However, the unusual team soon needs to cooperate in order to prevent a war between two yakuza clans and find out what really happened to the mob accountant.

The greatest thing about the movie are the two conflicting lead characters and their fascinating relationship that evolves throughout the entertaining movie. The film convinces with grisly fights, dirty locations and cool one-liners. The plot comes around with a few surprises towards the end which explain how the different characters have become who they are.

If you like brutal yakuza flicks of the eighties and nineties, you will certainly appreciate this nostalgic but entertaining movie. The Blood of Wolves takes its inspiration from movies such as Another Lonely Hitman, Shinjuku Triad Society and Hana-Bi. Genre fans will certainly find this movie thoroughly entertaining.