Finishing a Robert Mitchum bio last week, I was in a Mitchum frame of mind when I filled up my Netflix queue. Having read about all these movies I'd only heard about, I thought I'd give some a shot. First up, 1974's The Yakuza directed by Sydney Pollack.When his daughter is kidnapped by Japanese gangsters, American businessman George Tanner (Brian Keith) turns to old friend and army buddy Harry Kilmer (Mitchum) to help bring her back. Harry has to call in a favor of a man named Tanaka Ken (Ken Takakura) to first find Tanner's daughter and then bring her back to safety. Ken is a former Yakuza, a Japanese gangster, who after 10 years is forced into the life he so willingly left. The actual rescue goes smoothly, but that's when the real problems arise. A big man in the Yakuza, gangster Tono, still has issues with both Tanner and Kilmer.
For a movie listed as an intelligent thriller, it's awfully slow-paced and laid back. The plotline unravels slowly as we get to know other characters and sub-plots. For one, Harry's long-lost love Eiko (Keiko Kishi) lives in Tokyo with her young daughter. The background? As an occupation soldier following WWII, Harry saved Eiko and her daughter's life. They fell in love, only to have Ken, Eiko's brother, show up and say she can't love an American. He owes a great debt to Harry, but at the same time he's torn because of his beliefs. With all the unraveling plot, expect a fair share of twists and turns, one big reveal in particular.
What does work here is the strained relationship between Harry and Tanaka Ken. They have little in common and have fought in the past. But because of their crossed paths, each owes the other something. It's never easy to do, but it's the right thing to do. They have an obligation to live up to their shared pasts. Watching the movie, all I could think was that this would make a great western, just like Seven Samurai inspired The Magnificent Seven. Like those movies, the characters are looking for redemption, and they're honor-bound to get the job done.
With the slowish pace, the confrontations then are that much more startling. Pollack lulls you into a comfortable state with scenes of dialogue between all these different characters, and then WHAM! gunshots and samurai swords everywhere! Here's a good example, although here's a SPOILER warning because one main character is killed. But the best thing is the final showdown and Harry, armed with pistol and double-barreled shotgun, and Ken, with his samurai sword, seek revenge against a small army of Tono's henchmen.
Now as I'm writing this, I'm liking the movie more now than I did watching it. It's not a long movie at 111 minutes, but the storytelling pace can be so slow at times it feels much longer. The ideas were all there but something doesn't translate. With too many characters and backgrounds, some get left in the background. I would have liked to know more about Keith's Tanner, but instead he vanishes for large chunks of the movie. The same for Herb Edelman as Oliver, a man who adopted Japan as his home after WWII who goes way back with Harry and George. In general, it feels like Pollack wasn't quite sure where to go with the movie, especially after the final showdown.
As the grizzled, emotionally-scarred Harry, Mitchum is dead-on. He's laid back but ready for a fight at a moment's notice and more than capable of handling himself. In his early 50s, the actor had a world-weary look to him that fits the part so well. Takakura matches Mitchum well as Ken, a warrior himself forced to do something that doesn't come easy for him. Also standing out in the cast is Richard Jordan as Dusty, George's personal bodyguard sent along to help Harry out if he can. He's young but experienced and is starting to figure things out about the world.
I'm conflicted about this one because I'm somewhere in the middle on a rating. Some parts really worked, and others didn't. It's definitely a movie that would benefit from another viewing with all that's going on. I wanted to like this one, but it didn't grab me. So for now, I'll give it a positive rating with an asterisk next to it. Enough was worth watching to recommend this one.
The Yakuza (1974): **/****
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