Karakkaze yarô

I've observed before, elsewhere, that if one is tired and starts watching an especially great film, it can have the effect of perking one up. Alternatively, one can be wide awake, and start watching an especially bad or unremarkable film, and it can have the effect of putting one to sleep. I'm not saying that it is specifically the fault of 'Afraid to die' that I fell asleep in the middle of watching, not any more than I'm saying that it is specifically an example of a bad movie. What I am saying is that for however broadly well made or enjoyable 'Afraid to die ' it, it doesn't specifically make much of an impression. And that's okay! Not every flick needs to be a revelation, or outwardly striking, and sometimes it's enough to look at something and say "yeah, it's fine" or "yeah, it's pretty good." Of course, without being actively engaging or inspiring an especial reaction, we'll also have no cause to rewatch, nor to give a particular recommendation for anyone else to check it out. And there's the rub, I suppose.

I enjoyed this. It's a worthwhile story, and one that has been told by other filmmakers from other countries with the necessary details adjusted to fit their culture: released from prison, a gangster faces pressure to give up the life, but change is hard and his seedy, violent past won't release him so easily. All involved made commendable, capable contributions to bring the saga to bear, from the writing, direction, and acting, to sets and costume design; from music and sound, to stunts and effects; from cinematography, to editing, to all other bits and bobs along the way. Some odds and ends are extra well done; others are a little less sure-footed; the sum total is just swell, even as protagonist Takeo is especially coarse, dubious, and unlikable. This is all that the feature needs to be, and it doesn't need to be more - although, if it were, then I might be inclined to speak of it more enthusiastically. I'm glad enough that I watched, but I'm also unlikely to ever think about this again.

I'm glad for those who get more out of 'Afraid to die' than I do; I've no quarrel with those who take a harsher view toward it, either. I wish there were more about this title to concretely earn my favor, but I suppose every now and again "good enough" is just that.

Yukio Mishima's lead performance in this is bizarre, and I could never work out what awkwardness was intended and what wasn't.

I guess it gives what's an otherwise straightforward yakuza film a bit more flavour, even if everyone else here is less of a wild card, acting-wise. Either they all understood the assignment and Mishima didn't, or Mishima understood it better than everyone else and was doing something genuinely brilliant.

Afraid to Die is also a little slow and repetitive in parts. I've seen better crime-dramas that came out in Japan around this time, and I've seen worse. There's a little here that's odd and intriguing, and a good deal of it just kind of gets the job done.

A film directed by Karakkaze Yaro and stars Yukio Mishima as a Bogart-looking Yakuza, who tries to go straight for his new found hard-working girlfriend. There is a great beginning to the film, which I will not reveal, and it maintains a bit of suspense as we proceed through the sleazy underground of Tokyo, and the sleazy people that live there.

Our hero does meet a decent girl, however, and tries his best to go straight. But getting out of the Yakuza is virtually an impossible task, as you will see from the film. Worth viewing for the characterizations. The storyline is a bit hackneyed after the opening scene, however.

Afraid to Die, one of the four Yasuzo Masumura films that Fantoma has recently released on DVD, contains several examples of the directorial mastery of the same man who directed Giants and Toys and Bind Beast - in fact, the entire film is skillfully directed - but the script is terribly dull. Also working against the film is Yukio Mishima. He was the original draw for the film. He was a famous novelist at the time, probably the most famous in Japan, and his fans desperately wanted to see him in a film. Unfortunately, he's not a very good actor. I guess his poor performance is just as well blamed on the script, though. His character fluctuates a lot. We're supposed to like him, or at least sympathize with him, but that's not really possible. He's a pure scumbag. Afraid to Die is worth watching. It's not very long, and, like I said above, there are a couple of great scenes. One particular death scene is alone worth the price of a rental, if you're lucky enough to find it on your local video shelf. If you're thinking about buying any of Fantoma's Masumura DVDs, this one's not really worth it. Definitely buy Giants and Toys and Blind Beast. I haven't yet seen Manji. I did order it, though, so by the time you read this I could have already posted a review. Check it out. For Afraid to Die: 7/10.

First let me say that I totally ignored that the famous Japanese writer Mishima was an actor too. This is for me a solid, tough and sometimes disturbing crime film, with heavy noir accents inspired I guess by the American movies of this period. I mean the overall atmosphere. Mishima was a truly good actor, convincing, at least for such a performance. The characters relationship is very weird and hard to understand from the Western countries point of view. Maybe Mishima put a lot of himself in this role. This film deserves to be more widely known. I have seen far far worse in terms of Yakuza plots.