Director: Keiichi Ozawa
Notable Cast: Tetsuya Watari, Chieko Matsubara
With the speed that Nikkatsu was pumping out these Outlaw films, it’s not terribly out of
realm of possibility that they would continue to adhere to the basic concepts
and formulas that made the series so popular to begin with. I touched base on
this idea with the third film Heartless
and its more episodic approach to the foundation, but with the fourth film Goro the Assassin it’s pretty much a
solidified truth in what structure and emotional beats the audience is going to
see. However, it’s not a bad thing. In fact, it’s probably for the best for a
film like Goro. The yakuza thriller further strips itself of a lot of the artistic moments
and thematic material that the series used (both in successful and detrimental
ways depending on the film) and instead throttles down on tight writing and
more naturalistic character arcs. It might be predictable if you’ve seen the
first few films, but that doesn’t mean it’s ineffective.
Goro (Tatsuya Watari), after heading to prison for a brief
stint with a yakuza brother-in-arms, promises his friend on his deathbed to
take a message to his sister. Being the loyal friend he is, Goro intends to do
just that, but finding the woman proves harder than expected. Soon he becomes entangled
in a brothel and strip club scheme with the local yakuza who intend to make
sure Goro never interferes again…which is probably the worst decision they’ve ever
made.
Truthfully, being as the film is still within the range of
being a prequel to the first two entries (and I think a sequel to the last one…but
at this point, I’m not entirely sure), then you already know basically how
things turn out. We know that Goro is in danger, but not life threatening
danger. We know that he will not end up with the girl at the end who is once
again played by series regular Chieko Matsubara. You know that he’s going to
end up assassinating some yakuza boss in the final moments of the film. The
formula exists and Goro the Assassin seems very content to follow it as such.
That doesn’t stop this film from being one of the best that this franchise has
to offer though based on sheer execution. Director Ozawa, returning after
directing the second film, has a knack for creating a tight and emotionally
resonating plot that lingers even if the themes and artistic elements are
pulled back. The writing here is simply better and the film wraps around itself
in some strong ways. Many smaller characters have great return pieces, the
subplots are all wonderfully finished and finalized (unless they are not meant
to be – as the final scene of the film would indicate), and the character work
is developed precisely to the amount needed to keep the narrative moving. The
few knife fight sequences are well put together and the twisting
plot moves in some surprisingly effective and dark ways. If anything, while
Goro the Assassin might not quite have the artistic punch of the original film,
it might be just as well written and executed overall.
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| Goro the Assassin original art. |
One of the more intriguing aspects of the film is its rather
effective look at women and the social commentary about their role. At this
point we know that Goro has become this wandering yakuza force of justified
vengeance unleashed upon those who try to control him or infringe on his
promises and loyalties. Goro the Assassin really establishes a unique and heartfelt
position he has about women though. The plot takes us into the realm of strip
clubs and brothels as a setting, but the film really builds some fascinating
themes and characters within this concept. A young yakuza man refuses to allow
his unspoken love for the girl next door to allow him to forsake her to the
life of a woman in this line of work, the sister of the dying man in the
opening is a woman forced into prostitution because of her financial situation,
and there is a young working woman (the main love interest for our anti-hero)
who remains caught in repeated situations where she is stepped on for just
being female. In all of these instances the villains are the ones conspiring against
their empowerment and the heroes of the film are the ones fighting for them and
giving them opportunities to live like people and not things. Goro even scolds
some yakuza members at one point about it being okay to do questionable things
with money, but they should never slight a woman in public. This creates an
interesting dynamic for the character (and his world of justice) that lurches back
into how he acts in many of the previous films, adding in a layer that really
deepens what might have been a rather straight forward yakuza story.
Calling a film formulaic might seem like a jab to the
refreshing qualities of a film, but in the case of Goro the Assassin it’s the execution of the formula that carries it
into being one of the best of the franchise thus far. It’s not overly artful or
even deep outside of a few repeated themes and its feminist approach to its
characters, but the film is written so tightly and effectively that it rises to
be both an entertaining yakuza tale and a movie that continues to build the
legend of Goro. Fans of the franchise are sure to love what Goro the Assassin has to offer and the
episodic nature continues to work for the series in some surprising ways.
Written By Matt Reifschneider
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