Who payed the critics

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

This is just so good I can't believe that not only had I not seen it but not even heard of it. Screenplay by Paul Schrader (and his brother) just before he did Taxi Driver should have drawn attention but then maybe the Scorsese film took all the attention. Sydney Pollack's direction is assured and he gets great performances from everyone, but I reckon it is the script thats the thing. Moreover it is the only US film I have ever seen that seems to have the vaguest notion of Japan and it culture. So much of this rings true that it tingles with the excitement. The 70s streets of Tokyo and Kyoto are something to behold and the believable interaction between the main characters quite fabulous. There is bloody action here but for a film with such a title nothing like as much as expected, and all the better for it. Love, memory, betrayal, loyalty and repayment of debts both financial and emotional are all here - oh and Robert Mitchum and ken Takakura are great.

THE YAKUZA is the best film about Japanese gangsters ever made in America – because the filmmakers go above and beyond the call of duty to provide a literate, mature, and realistic depiction of those feared mafia gangs who lurk in the shadowy recesses of Asian life. This is old-fashioned film-making at its best, without a reliance on outlandish special effects or action to move the story along. Of particular interest is Paul Shrader's script, which is undoubtedly of superior quality. It's hard to see how a bad film could have been made out of it, but with veteran director Sydney Pollack calling the shots that was never going to happen.Robert Mitchum is the big draw, providing a lovable, grizzled lead through whose eyes we witness the dark side of Japanese culture. He's given quite wonderful support by the man he's partnered with – Ken Takakura, the epitome of the Japanese 'stone face'. There's a supporting cast of strong character actors too, including James Shigeta, the guy who played the boss in DIE HARD. I recognised his voice immediately although not his appearance.Don't go in expecting this to be an action film, because it's not. There are a couple of shoot-outs, yes, but for the most part this is a slow, mannered film exploring themes of honour, redemption, loyalty, and justice, all from the distinct Yakuza perspective. Saying that, there is an extended climax in which our two heroes attack the enemy base – Mitchum wielding a shotgun, Takakura a samurai sword – and proceed to wreak havoc on the bad guys in long, breathtaking, stylised scenes of violence that always keep realism to the fore. It's a great end to what is an assured and developed piece – not a film to get excited about, perhaps, but one to enjoy and feel nonetheless.

Viewed on DVD. Mostly shot on location. A time capsule of what Tokyo looked like some 40 years ago. Japanese actors look fabulous; not so much for the American actors. Minimal scrip; what there is of it is pretty silly. Direction is languid and seems to have been lost in translation (an interview with the Director indicates that the language barrier was a major problem with the film). Gorgeous print with lots of easily read (uncluttered and leisurely presented/photographed) Hiragana and Katakana symbols to practice your reading skills. Just turn off the sound (unless you are monitoring the accuracy of the subtitles) and enjoy the views! WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

There are some serious problems with the movie from the screenplay to production. Let's start from the screenplay.It starts slow plain boring. There is a flat opening scene which a Yakuza member offers his service to the mob boss in Japan, follows with an exceptionally long opening credits and then again one flat scene leads to another. Nothing really happens till almost half of the movie and by that time I bet half of the audience decide not to waste more time. When the action begins again there is another surprising fact to the downside. It was not supposed to be a Kill Bill type of movie in which a good swordsman kills an army without getting a scratch and apparently that's what happening. I really didn't expect the movie to get as unrealistic as it got but what really bothered me was that the hero of the movie was aging Robert Mitchum (Kilmer), at 57 years old he was already in bad shape, seeing him I could easily dream of heart attack! How come this 57 years old, 75 looking heart attack dreamcatcher manages to shoot and kill everyone like John Wayne in his 30s? Also the Yakuza looks like an army of brainless zombies... Makes sense, they better be if the hero is that old fart otherwise the movie would look even worse than what it already was. Kilmer and Tanaka managed to kill the zombie Yakuza army easily, kilmer attacked with guns representing USA and Tanaka with samurai sword representing Japan and by the way, apparently Japan has no police. People are being killed by white Americans in public places and yet they walk free no one looking for them, isn't that awesome?Anf finally the post climax... Post climax should short and sweet, showing how the characters are doing after the end of action but apparently the post climax on this movie was a episode of it's own! almost 25 boring minutes!!!This movie could be descent if not awesome with a faster and shorter screenplay and of course better cast selection but for what it is, it belongs to the hall of fame of worse movies ever!