The Yakuza Papers, Vol. 4 - Police Tactics

Gangster (Yazuka) flicks were one of the most popular genres in Japan after World War II. Director Kinji Fukasaku provided one of the great Yakuza pictures of all in his five part Blood Without Honor And Humanity series, also known as the Yazuka Papers. It was based upon the diary of a Yakuza boss and followed Hirono Shozo (Bunta Sugawara) a midlevel Yakuza boss who was involved in all of the struggles for power between the major gangs in Hiroshima province.Volume 4 is set in the early 1960s. Boss Yamamori had just been able to take over Hiroshima City and aligned with the Shinwa Group but was opposed by Boss Uchimoto who was with the Akashi Family. The Shinwa Group and the Akashi Family were the two largest syndicates in western Japan. Hirano was expelled from the Yamamori group and joined with Uchimoto. As with the other volumes, this one involves all of the gang wars, alliances, and backstabbing that characterized the Yakuza. The film is given an almost documentary feel to it with constant voice overs narrating events and giving background to the different players involved because there were so many. The DVD also comes with a timeline that covers the major characters and gangs throughout the entire series as well. The title Police Tactics comes from a nationwide crackdown launched by the government in 1963 against the gangs.Fukasaku was a master at his trade. The series is full of drama and action.

I'm making my way through Kinji Fukasaku's The Yakuza Papers: Battles Without Honor & Humanity and the latest installment is the fourth in the series of five, Police Tactics (1974). In this series while the yakuza skirmishes get out of hand the authorities start to crack down on organized crime in preparation of the 1964 Olympics, which will put Japan on the world stage. Takeda (Akira Kobayashi) is unable to keep his underlings in order as the take matters into their own hands killing a boss in neutral territory. The slimy Uchimoto informs on his own men when they try for retribution by killing a rival. The end result finds the protagonist, Hirono (Bunta Sugawara), in jail. Boss Yamamori avoids assassination but is also roused by the police.