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| YOUTH OF THE BEAST (1963) | |
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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. Suzuki’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 Seijun’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. |
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DIRECTED BY |
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| Seijun Suzuki | |
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Japan |
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| REVIEWED | |
| 3/10/2005 | |
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The Internet Movie Database. |
