The Godfather in Japan is perhaps the best, and most flattering, comparison to make of Battles Without Honor and Humanity (Jingi naki tatakai). The first of five films by the late Kinji Fukasaku in The Yakuza Papers quintology, the film is a world of violence, where betrayal isn’t just around the corner, it’s standing right next to you in the guise of friendship.

Just as with The Godfather, the tale is about the strong bond of loyalty and family; be it a real family in Coppola’s films, or the gangster loyalty in Fukasaku’s brilliant drama. The comparisons are not unfounded, but they are surface comparison in reality, some of it is plot based, but for the most part, Battles Without Honor and Humanity is a unique film, in his expression and focus on friendship and betrayal.

In post-war Japan, the American GIs bully and savage the people of Japan after their glorious, and unrequired, bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. America won the war against Japan, and now they gloat over them with their presence. When a Japanese woman is chased by American soldiers, and then publicly molested, Shozo Hirono (Bunta Sugawara) intervenes to rescue the woman. Escaping from the Military Police, Shozo and his friends head to their hideout.

At the same time there is a massive war between to local, rival gangs: the Yamamaori and the Doi. When one of Shozo’s colleagues is attacked by a drunk with a sword, Shozo heads out to find and kill the man who hurt his friend. His friends go with him, but only Shozo will carry out the murder, having never killed before. This lands him in prison and during a scuffle and a riot over rice, he and another man attack the prison guards, and are thrown in to a cell without food.

It’s perhaps easy to see where the influences came for Battles Without Honor and Humanity, and at the same time, the film itself has easily influenced later films of gangster loyalty

It turns out Shozo’s cell mate, Wakasugi (Tatsuo Umemiya) a member of the Doi gang, and after a conversation, both become sworn blood brothers. Shozo helps Wakasgi to escape from prison by helping him commit and attempted suicide – hospitalised vicitms are bailed out fo jail immediately. Wakasugi contacts Yamamori who runs Shozo’s district, who pays for his bail and let’s him know that Wakasugi is safe in hospital.

So begins a complicated friendship with his blood brother, who fights for the other side, but his loyalty lies with Shozo, through hell or high water. Shozo’s friends join Yamamori, as does Shozo, and so a new revolution begins in the district, which leads to a bloody, and horrific gang war between the Yamamori gang and the Doi. When Shozo volunteers to protect Yamamori by killing one of the heads of the Doi gang, internal betrayal, executions and hatred begins to manifest itself between the previous friends, and now gang leaders.

Fukasaku has created a gripping and incredibly masculine piece of cinema which has all the elements you would expect from a gangster film, but fuses them with the Japanese culture – the tale itself, however, remains universal. There is no honour amongst thieves, no loyalty between fellow criminals. The rate at which people get killed in the film is astonishing. In the first two to three minutes of the opening we are introduced to about 20 different significant characters with fast captions of who they are and who they belong to.

These people have important roles to the story, but end up dying by the first half of the movie, and then more characters are introduced. It’s absolutely chaotic, but after the initial frustrating confusion of who’s who, everything is put into perspective and you’re drawn to the story like a moth to a flame. The performances are excellent throughout, and although the special effects such as fake blood leave a lot to be desired, dismissing this from the mind, everything about the film screams quality, passion and dedication.

the tale is about the strong bond of loyalty and family; be it a real family in Coppola’s films, or the gangster loyalty in Fukasaku’s brilliant drama

It’s perhaps easy to see where the influences came for Battles Without Honor and Humanity, and at the same time, the film itself has easily influenced later films of gangster loyalty. This is perhaps Fukasaku’s finest piece of work I have seen to date, and makes a mockery of his rather dull and tragic samurai films. Though adapted from a true story, Fukasaku makes the whole experience feel genuine. The fast camera work, the plethora of characters squeezed into 1 hour and 40 minute provides sheer exhiliration from start to finish. It’s the sort of beautifully crafted Yakuza film that makes you want to see more, that begs for a sequel.

It’s fortunate then that there are a further four volumes of The Yakuza Papers, although the order in which they’re viewed is a little confusing. For example, Battles Without Honor and Humanity came after Proxy War, which is labelled as the third film, yet was released first and stars Sonny Chiba. After which the remaining films pretty much all star Bunta Sugawara. Following the logic of the Western labelling then, this is the first of the five films. Still, confusion aside, I’m extrememly motivated to complete the collection.

Battles Without Honor and Humanity is a film I can thoroughly recommened, not for it’s brutal, muscular violence but for it’s committment to tell a brilliant story while providing an enthralling view of life in the underworld. A fast, violent, and superbly acted gangster film.

Verdict: Perhaps the best of Fukasaku’s films I’ve seen to date. Superb.