A gambler who keeps winning his way OUT of the family business.
In the early years of the twentieth-century a young gambler returns to his home town where he finds the gang of which he was once a member engaged in a feud with a rival gang. Though he successfully settles their differences he is turned out of the organization for the way in which accomplishes it. Upon his return he finds that the fortunes of the group have declined - there has been treachery and desertion. This time with the approval of the seniors he settles the differences with a duel. After winning, however, he declines the position of gang-boss, preferring his freedom, and once more leaves town.
Direction
Lean, efficient storytelling that wastes zero minutes.
Acting
Hideki Takahashi's smoldering reluctance to play hero.
Production
Gritty Taisho-era sets dripping with period authenticity.
Director
Haruyasu Noguchi
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Part of the 'ninkyo eiga' (chivalry film) wave that romanticized yakuza as noble outlaws before the genre turned cynical in the 1970s.
Hideki Takahashi became the face of youth rebellion in Japanese cinema after this role, despite playing a character who literally runs from responsibility.
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