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Pale Flower

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Pale Flower

Released Mar 1, 1964

1h 36m

Crime

Drama

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Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

12 Reviews

91%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Japanese gangster Muraki (Ryô Ikebe) is released from jail after a few years and finds both organized crime and the real world have moved on without him. Taking up with his old Yakuza crew, he spends his time in gambling dens, where he meets rich thrill seeker Saeko (Mariko Kaga). She's desperate to have a wild and seedy time in the underworld, which interests Muraki at first. However, he realizes that Saeko's destructive, hedonistic urges will likely mean the end for both of them.

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Pale Flower is one of the most haunting noirs I've seen, and something more; in 1964 it was an important work in an emerging Japanese New Wave of independent filmmakers, an exercise in existential cool.

Rated: 4/4

Apr 6, 2020

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Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

[Ryô] Ikebe's difficulty in memorizing dialogue had shaken the industry's faith in him--and his faith in himself--but Shinoda knew he could get the job done in light of his "erotic and graceful presence," and Ikebe fully rewards the filmmaker's faith.

Rated: 4/4

Mar 20, 2023

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Pieter-Jan Van Haecke

Psychocinematography

Pale Flower is a ‘seductive’ nihilistic masterpiece that explores the unescapable subjective problems created by the rhythmic capitalistic machinery.

Aug 29, 2022

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Rob Aldam

Backseat Mafia

Stylishly shot and superbly acted, Masahiro Shinodas film is an exhilarating descent into the underworld.

Mar 10, 2022

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Ian Thomas Malone

ianthomasmalone.com

Shinoda digs into the heart of a life in decay, years of unrewarded loyalty blunting the natural longing for a greater purpose.

Jan 19, 2022

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Panos Kotzathanasis

Asian Movie Pulse

"Pale Flower" is stunning to watch, thought provoking and entertaining at the same time, and a true masterpiece of a film.

Apr 11, 2021

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Insomniac X

Hybrid yakuza and romantic drama. Understated performances and haunting, melancholy imagery create a rich noir atmosphere and underscore the character's chronic loneliness. The story's operatic climax foreshadows similar moments in the Godfather series.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/30/25

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william d

The gambling scenes are superb. I thought so even though I have no idea how to play - or even what to call - the game they were playing. The rest of the movie is not so impressive, just a lot of "aren't-we-cool-in-a-1960s-kind-of-way" posturing. It's worth a watch if you have nothing else to do.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

This is not a generic gangster film. It's a subtle and emotional portrayal of ennui in vintage Tokyo. The windowless gambling rooms and dark streets are an outlet for characters who are looking for trouble to fill the emptiness in their lives. Problems arise when the stakes are raised higher and higher in order to keep the thrills coming. Highly satisfying and poignant.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Audience Member

Its moody and atmospheric, but also very static. I couldn't get into this film, it felt a bit slow. I don't consider it a good film.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

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Audience Member

Masahiro Shinoda's odd re-working of Camus' 'The Stranger' within the 1960's Japanese Yakuza world of vice and gambling is more style than substance. Masao Kosugi's artful cinematography blended with Yûji Takahashi and Tôru Takemitsu musical score creates an atmosphere that is more "cool" than paranoid. Less a "thriller" than an interesting "experience." "Pale Flower" offers a great deal more than it feels like it should. Excellent.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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Audience Member

One of the more unique of the yakuza movies, really offers a slice of the obsessive and lonely directioneless life of one man who becomes obsessed with this girl but then not entirely. The protagonist was particularly gripping all throughout.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

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Masahiro Shinoda

Director

Ryô Ikebe

The yakuza

Mariko Kaga

The young girl

Takashi Fujiki

The killer

Chisako Hara

Yakuza's lover

Eijiro Tono

Gang leader

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Synopsis

Japanese gangster Muraki (Ryô Ikebe) is released from jail after a few years and finds both organized crime and the real world have moved on without him. Taking up with his old Yakuza crew, he spends his time in gambling dens, where he meets rich thrill seeker Saeko (Mariko Kaga). She's desperate to have a wild and seedy time in the underworld, which interests Muraki at first. However, he realizes that Saeko's destructive, hedonistic urges will likely mean the end for both of them.

Director: Masahiro Shinoda
Screenwriter: Masaru Baba, Masahiro Shinoda, Shintarô Ishihara
Distributor: Home Vision Entertainment
Production Co: Bungei Production Ninjin Club
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 1, 1964, Original
Runtime: 1h 36m