Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

Beauty of the Underworld

Play trailer Poster for Beauty of the Underworld 1958 1h 27m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
Tomatometer 3 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Released from prison, a gangster (Michitaro Mizushima) retrieves diamonds sought by fellow yakuza.

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Seijun Suzuki's surrealism, still formative but already of comical ease Jun 3, 2010 Full Review Jake Euker F5 (Wichita, KS) Why fight it? Suzuki's urban yakuza tales are among the most outrageously enjoyable films to emerge from post-war Japan, and this stands near the best of them. Rated: 3.5/5 Dec 16, 2004 Full Review Christopher Null Filmcritic.com Rated: 3/5 Jun 1, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (10) audience reviews
Audience Member Although not one of Suzuki's very best films, try Branded to Kill or Tokyo Drifter, this tough film noir is well worth a watch. From sadistic gangsters to hiding diamonds inside mannequins, the film is full of surprises. Miyamoto plays a Sonny Chiba like character who seems untouchable for most of the time. Seijun Suzuki's direction and use of locations is brilliant, there is even some humour, though some of it is rather cruel. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Early effort from Seijun Suzuki is not among his best. A servicable Japanese film noir melodrama with some nice black and white cinematography and an exciting shoot-em-up finale, but ultimately nothing special, though entertaining enough for noir fans. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member Worthwhile, but not as good as Suzuki's best. Great camera angles, though. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member A pretty sweet gangster noir flick by Seijun Suzuki. This film features some beautiful lighting, as one would expect, with the high contrast black and white creating a great mood. This is definetly a more restrained Seijun Suzuki then in his later years, but there are still some very cool subtle symbolism that he uses. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Connoisseurs of crisp, high contrast black and white will be in their element when you see a man dressed in black in a black sewer taking a black gun out of a black hole over a river of black water. Just like American Noir, Underworld Beauty doesn't have much going for it in the "wholesome romance" department. A complex net of double-crosses and underworld codes with some subtle symbolism thrown in for good measure. While this film may not connect with you emotionally, it will appeal to your intellect. It's tough with class. <a href="http://s273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/?action=view¤t=underworldbeauty.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/underworldbeauty.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a> Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Audience Member An average plot and subdued acting is balanced superbly with striking cinematography that takes full advantage of the so-called "limitations" of black-and-white film. Characterizations are sharp and well-defined, but trite plot twists and a weak climax mar the ending. Still, a decent early iteration of the yakuza movie. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Beauty of the Underworld

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Released from prison, a gangster (Michitaro Mizushima) retrieves diamonds sought by fellow yakuza.
Director
Seijun Suzuki
Production Co
Nikkatsu Corporation
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
Japanese
Runtime
1h 27m