Tokyo Drifter

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Tokyo Drifter

1966

1h 23m

Action

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Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

93%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

79%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

After yakuza boss Kurata (Ryuji Kita) dissolves his own criminal empire, a rival kingpin offers a position to Kurata's top operative, Tetsuya "Phoenix Tetsu" Hondo (Tetsuya Watari). When the fiercely loyal Tetsu declines, Otsuka taps unstoppable Tatsuzo the "Viper" (Tamio Kawaji), a ruthless gun-for-hire, to assassinate him. As the Viper trails his target through the countryside, the agile Phoenix Tetsu grows concerned that one of his former associates has betrayed him.

Geoff Andrew

Time Out

Inspired lunacy.

Feb 9, 2006

Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

A 1966 yakuza gangster thriller with a pop-art look by the formidable B-movie director Seijun Suzuki.

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Weird, wild, and nearly incomprehensible, Seijun Suzuki’s gangster movie masterpiece... recreates the Yakuza genre as a pop-art James Bond cartoon as directed by Jean-Luc Godard.

Sep 9, 2023

Full Review

Kanishk Devgan

Film Companion

A unique and significant voice in the history of cinema that deserves much more love.

Mar 29, 2021

Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

I immediately recognize the compelling aesthetic of 'Tokyo Drifter', the yakuza film by Japanese director Seijun Suzuki, but for some reason I can't get excited about his criminal tale of the yakuza in the blue suit. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 6/10

Aug 8, 2020

Full Review

Michael E. Grost

Classic Film and Television

Delirious mix of musical and gangster film has spectacular design and color.

Nov 21, 2017

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Audience Member

Astonishingly stylish, though sometimes hard to follow. There isn't much depth to this film but it sure is incredibly COOL, with a fantastic soundtrack to match.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Michael M

More a piece of modern art than a film, Tokyo Drifter is nearly incomprehensible, but the visuals are so stunning that you won't care.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/13/21

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robert r

Sleek, stylish and quirky as all get-out, "Tokyo Drifter" represents the rare case in which a movie strikes that ever so pecious Goldilocks zone between being too eccentric and weird for its own good and being simply impossible to look away from. So much of this movie left me either scratching my head or busting a gut in laughter, but then again, so many other moments either dazzled or inspired me in some kind of aesthetic fashion. I guess what I'm trying to say is; come for the mise en scène, stay for the saloon fight.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

My first yakuza film and it was a very unconventional one. The visuals are revolutionary despite the fact that it is made in the sixties. The movie comes off so abstract that jf you plan on watching it for the story, you might get confused in a good way.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A really cool slick jazzy Tokyo gangster movie that I can see a lot of inspiration for Twin Peaks and Kill Bill. The plot got a bit convoluted and hard to follow at some points, but god damn did the main characters light blue suit kill it. Solid, concept, solid execution.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Cool aesthetically driven film. Filled with sharp eye catching colours and great set design. The story is pretty standard B Movie material but it's an entertaining watch. You can see how films like Tokyo Drifter inspired directors such as Tarantino.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

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Seijun Suzuki

Director

Tetsuya Watari

Tetsuya 'Phoenix Tetsu' Hondo

Chieko Matsubara

Chiharu

Ryuji Kita

Kurata

Hideaki Nitani

Kenji Aizawa

Tamio Kawaji

Tatsuzo

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Synopsis

After yakuza boss Kurata (Ryuji Kita) dissolves his own criminal empire, a rival kingpin offers a position to Kurata's top operative, Tetsuya "Phoenix Tetsu" Hondo (Tetsuya Watari). When the fiercely loyal Tetsu declines, Otsuka taps unstoppable Tatsuzo the "Viper" (Tamio Kawaji), a ruthless gun-for-hire, to assassinate him. As the Viper trails his target through the countryside, the agile Phoenix Tetsu grows concerned that one of his former associates has betrayed him.

Director: Seijun Suzuki
Producer: Tetsuro Nakagawa
Screenwriter: Kôhan Kawauchi
Production Co: Nikkatsu
Genre: Action
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 8, 2017
Runtime: 1h 23m

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