Youth of the Beast (The Criterion Collection)

Seijun Suzuki's films show stylish framing of each scene that brings something unique to the audience each time he calls action. Much of his success might be grounded in the many films he made at the beginning of his career. These films were made quickly and on a rather modest budget, which provided him with several opportunities to fine tune his directorial skills. In Youth of the Best the audience can see cool framing of scenes in a way that Quentin Tarantino did in Pulp Fiction in the 1990s and in a similar way that the contemporary director Takeshi Miike does in his films. This suggests that Seijun was not only before his time, but that his bravery as a director brings out the cinematic brilliance in him.The film opens in black and white with a large crowd that has gathered in curiosity outside a small hotel. A man is found dead with a dead woman on top of him in one of the hotel's tiny rooms. The police are investigating the scene while one police detective is reading out loud what seems to be a suicide note. Consequently, the police detective voices the obvious nature of the deadly incident that has taken place in the room hours earlier while another police officer comments on how lucky the dead man must have been to have had a loving mistress such as the dead woman on the floor. Further investigation of the room reveals the dead man's line of work, as he used to be a police detective. After this short opening, the film turns into a colored cinematic experience, as it makes a short leap into the future.Initially, it seems a little confusing where the story is going, as the audience is allowed to follow a thug trying to enter the world of yakuza, the Japanese mafia. Nonetheless, a patient audience will be rewarded, as the story will help reveal the identity of this gangster, Joji "Jo" Mizuno (Joe Shishido). By raising some havoc in the Nomoto Enterprises turf Jo succeeds in getting their attention, as he quickly climbs the ladder of criminal success. He is offered a lucrative position in the Nomoto organization, as he is obliged to perform extortion for the organization in another gang's turf to show his loyalty.Eventually, the audience is introduced to Jo's true identity, as he has been released from jail and wants to repay a debt he has to the police detective that was found dead in the apparent double suicide at the beginning of the film. The film turns into an intricate cat and mouse game between Jo and the mobsters, as he attempts to find the true killers of the dead police detective. However, it is not as easy as Jo anticipated, as he finds himself in a quandary while encouraging gang war in his approach to find the killer.Seijun's gangster tale depicts a Japanese film noir with some possible influence by Kurosawa's Yojimbo (1961). Nonetheless, Seijun makes sure that it is not a rip-off of another film, which is evident as the story is told. The criminal and corrupt atmosphere in the film is elevated through scenes from backrooms and soundproofed rooms. Through these rooms the mise-en-scene brings wall-to-wall two-way mirrors, exotic dancers, and film clips on the back of theater screens that should help evoke additional emotional impact of the situations on the audience. This displays Seijun's personal interest in film, but also intentional contemplation by him. Maybe he wanted the audience to actually think more about the moment than just to merely enjoy the ride through the story.One notion that has been suggested is that the audience should reflect on their own folly while viewing Seijun's films. This notion is increasingly interesting while contemplating Suzuki's heavy use of sadism, violence, and sexual symbolism in the film. In some aspects, this is very similar to what one can see in Ichi the Killer (2001) by Takeshi Miike, but Miike brings the violence to the next level by visually illustrating what Seijun only suggested. In any case, there is something more in each scene than what meets the eye, which leaves much for the audience to ponder.

I discovered the films of Seijun Suzuki years ago and was surprised. He had a free wheeling style that was both creative and rebellious. What I love about Youth Of The Beast was actor Joe Shihid’s character of Joji Mizuno, a man walking into the shadow worlds of two yakuza groups and playing both sides to find out who was responsible for the death of a police detective and a woman in a hotel room. Joji’s relentless search brings him closer to death as he learns from both sides about their activities. But I didn’t expect to see the reveal at the end. It was an eye opener. There were no dull moments in this film, with its action scenes and mystery. I highly recommend this film to anyone interested in yakuza films and Seijun Suzuki, who is no Akira Kurosawa, but he definitely was up there with him and other filmmakers.

An audacious early outing from cult Japanese director Seijun Suzuki and the Nikkatsu studio, "Beast" is a hip, pulp-gangster flick with a twisty revenge plot involving murder, dope, go-go dancers, and salacious double crosses. (One kingpin even has a gay brother who slashes the face of anyone mentioning his mother!) With its surreal color palette, bizarre set pieces, and rapid cuts, the film has a unique visual flair--not to mention a killer crime-jazz score. And as the cop-turned-crook out for payback, Shishido is as hard-boiled as they come. For a lurid spin on the yakuza genre, unleash the "Beast."

I've become a fan to director Suzuki via the excellent 'Branded to Kill' and very good 'Tokyo Drifter'. This may be the best one of the 3

This is a fun crime thriller.

YAJUUNO SEISHUN (YOUTH OF THE BEAST / WILD YOUTH / THE BRUTE / WILD ANIMAL ADOLESCENCE [LIT.]). Gangster Fantasy Nonsense, But Fun!Rating = ***Director: Ichirou IkedaProducer: Keinosuke KuboDVD1963Film = three (3) stars; set design = four (4) stars; score = 3.5 stars. Director Ichirou Ikeda offers up a tongue-in-cheek, surrealistic depiction of a yakuza turf war complete with an embedded police spy. The huge cast makes it virtually impossible to keep tract of which character is a member of which gang. But not to worry. It doesn't matter, as the lines spoken by rival gang members/leaders are close to identical (which is a self-parodied complaint often made during the film!). Ikeda seems intent on creating scenes that exhibit all forms of criminal activity that contemporary censors would allow! The movie includes a surprise ending although the script does have a few clue fragments of what's to come early on. Actor Jou Shishido ("chubby checks") appears in virtually every scene and is able to defy some laws of physics by being at two places at virtually the same time (courtesy of the film's editing process)! (Shishido had surgery to blow out his checks apparently because the actor believed this would make him appear tougher on screen. Does one look meaner with the Mumps?) Set designs of yakusa offices are especially original. One is behind a panel of one-way mirrors in a nightclub and is sound proofed (enabling gang leaders to hold business meeting while watching customers and the entertainment). Another office is behind a movie theater screen (also sound proofed). Cinematography (wide screen, color) and scene lighting are fine. So is restoration. Translations/subtitles are close enough. Signs are translated. Score is particularly interesting. It successfully (and uniquely) bends jazz with rock&roll. In addition to chubby cheeks' over coming at least one macro law of physics, there are other (intentional?) amusing events such as: the title of the film (it is totally unrelated to the movie and seems to be bait for attracting young audiences); four burly gangsters often prying themselves out of tiny cars; screeching tires as cars turn corners on unpaved roads; and gun shots that always sound the same despite where they occur and which weapon is fired (the sound tract is over saturated with gun fire from smokeless weapons!). Grab lots of popcorn and enjoy! WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

Behind the meaningless title Youth of the Beast (even director Seijin Suzuki didn't know what it had to do with the film) lies a breathtaking Yakuza Yojimbo set in 60s Japan with a level of violence (but no sex thanks to the censors) that still surprises. Shot under the even more bizarre but at least a bit more relevant title Knock Off the Bad Guys: Leave It To Me, you have to wonder if Sergio Leone ever saw it, not just for the plot but the emphasis on style to distinguish it from the herd. Joe Shishido is the drifter playing two rival gangs against each other, one a top-class outfit with a modern office behind the one-way mirror in a the coolest soundproofed nightclub in Japanese cinema, the other a crap gang of wannabes operating behind the screen of a seedy downtown cinema, both separated from what could be completely different worlds of ordinary people providing a mute backdrop to their plotting. Of course, there's more to Shishido and his motives than meets the eye, but Suzuki delivers it all with such panache and ingenuity, not to mention a vivid use of color and CinemaScope and a great use of sound and silence en route to the neat final twist, that it's hard to argue with the wonderfully lurid trailer's verdict - it may revel in `Senseless cruelty vividly portrayed,' but it is indeed `A hard-boiled masterpiece.'Masters of Cinema's Blu-ray/DVD combo offers a pleasing subtitled 2.35:1 widescreen transfer that does justice to Kazue Nagatsuka's vivid widescreen colour and black and white photography, particularly important element in a film as stylised as this. The aforementioned Japanese trailer is included and fully subtitled (and there are some great over the top captions to enjoy in it) and while Eureka weren't able to licence the interviews with Suzuki and Shishido that appeared on the US Criterion DVD, they compensate with a 26-minute featurette with Tony Rayns that details the background not only of the film and its director but the conditions in Japan at the time it was made.

Super fast shipping, brand new, as it said on the description, I’ m very satisfied with this purchase.

Very entertaining film.

Great!!!...

Eccentric Japanese hoodlums with a dash of horseradish.