Minbo ou l'art subtil de l'extorsion

As other reviewers have pointed out, Itami was stabbed by Yakuza after the release of this film. The reason: They felt it too realistic. I suppose they feared that if the public were to find out their "secret" methods of intimidation were just a bunch of hot air, so to speak, it would soften their scare.

And so when you watch this brilliant and dynamic piece of filmmaking, remember that for as outlandish as the characters and situations may come across on screen--as "over-the-top" as it may seem--there was enough realism in the portrayal of the Yakuza mindset to ruffle a lot of feathers.

Think about the fact that there are hundreds of Yakuza movies out there and that this one was the one to stir up outright violence. It's like a Japanese "Colors"; maybe not the most realistic film, but rather a representation that captures a certain animal instinct in some people--like bottled react juice.

Itami continued to provide strong roles for women in this film. And while I agree that this film is not as "wacky" as some of his others, it has just the right combination of farce and graveness to make it a gem.

Great movie, great director. 9/10

This is really quite an uplifting and humorous film. The story basically revolves around a hotel that is regularly harassed by the Yakuza (the Japanese Mafia) by using civil manipulation to extort money. The hotel decides to hire a sassy, street-smart and charming lawyer, who also happens to be a woman, to help and train the hotel staff to defend itself against the Yakuza's "gentle extortion" tactics.

There are a lot of funny and charming moments in the beginning as the hotel employees try to deal with the Yakuza on their own, and fail miserably. But when Miyamoto enters the picture as the wily lawyer and employs her strategies, the movie really picks up its pace and proceeds to the uplifting and somewhat sad ending.

It is really great to see the evolution of the main characters from whimpering sissies into confident, headstrong and defiant defenders of the old hotel. You'll laugh, you'll cheer.

Definitely a must see!

O.K., when is the last time you saw a movie where the lawyer was the hero, and female to boot? If you like underdog films, you will LOVE minbo. It is very cleverly done and successfully demonstrates a quick wit outsmarts a quick temper, every time. The sub-titles are good and the action quick paced. Lot's a comedy and Japanese over-acting make this film just plain fun.

This is a very fine movie, definitely worth seeing, but as much as being a good film, it tells Japanese that they can stand up and act for themselves. The Yakuza have been successful at intimidation because of the Japanese propensity to feel that something is "shikata ga nai", or there's nothing they can do about it. This movie has a final scene that shows people standing up in the face of very real threats to their safety. This is not so unusual in an American movie because, for all our collective faults, there is usually someone here who will not put up with injustice and will do something heroic to change it. This is still highly unusual in Japan, and the fact that Itami Juzo made this movie and then suffered a knife attack by Yakuza for doing so, will hopefully produce a few more heroes there.

The rumours go that the Japanese director Juzo Itami was attacked by the Yakuza due to the realistic and disrespectful portrayal of them in his 1992 comedy "The Anti-Extortion Woman" or more commonly known as "Minbo". Realistic? I can't say for sure. But was it disrespectful? Absolutely. Itami crafted a niche for himself in the early 80s and late 90s with off-kilter comic gems that reveled in their absurdity and dealt with unusual subject matter, starting with his hit, "Tampopo". This feature definitely extends that offbeat sense of humour coupled with his darkly tailored undercurrent of social criticism in a simple plot that unfortunately is neither biting nor potent enough to warrant its lengthy runtime and exaggerated mode.

Minbo according to the attorney Mahiru Inoue (Nobuko Miyamoto) is slang, a truncated term for something that lawyers understand as the gentle art of extortion used by the Yakuza. She's somewhat of an expert in these matters as we see in a promising first scene at the poolside in Hotel Europa, a first-rate hotel competing for the attention of foreign delegates. However, the hotel's reputation is tarnished with the continued presence of the different Yakuza families who use the grounds as either meeting/exchange places, lounging areas or even to cheat the hoteliers out of some yen. The boardroom decides on taking action by assembling an Anti-Yakuza force from within but only manages a schmuck accountant and a meathead bellboy, both with plenty to learn about the world they live in. After an inspired introduction to both of them, the film gets down to the nitty-gritty of them failing to get rid of these foul-mouthed, shrewd gangsters. Well, this movie isn't called "The Anti-Extortion Woman" for nothing. And after about a dubious quarter of the film, we finally get to be truly acquainted with Miss Inoue, which really puts the opening scene's purpose into perspective.

She's here for a reason and that's to help the hotel and in the process teach these men a thing or two about being men. The film is strongly attuned to its titular character with her presence alone driving the film forward in terms of its comedy and plot. She faces up to overly confident mob bosses and talks them down to the hilt with her legal expertise and well-prepared plans that rely on surveillance and the need to be vigil in the face of overwhelming threats. It's novelty wears thin after awhile though, when she uses the same strategies over and over again with the new gangsters that show up. However, it can't be understated that the film's bulk of coherence lies with these scenes as she mentors the hotel into self-defending itself against these thugs.

Nobuko Miyamoto, Itami's wife is often cast in his films in a variety of roles. Her role as Inoue is by far the strongest in the cast that is usually prone to overacting and embarrassingly over-the-top theatrics that can actually be described as vaudevillian. She brings a deep sympathy and caring into her role as a confident but never hubristic seasoned attorney that specialises in Minbo. She never talks down to the dolts in the casts and is believable in her persuasiveness with the Yakuza and Itami wisely revolves an inert comedy around her pint-sized figure being surrounded by pompous, large men that inevitably fall to her knees. She even changes a massive shift in tone by coming up strong in an uneven denouement at the end, finally wising up everyone else to the virtues of being strong even in the face of hardship.

Rating: 3 out of 5