A love letter written in yakuza blood—promises break, prison walls rise, and honor demands its pound of flesh.
Seijiro and Shizue meet in Niigata and fall in love. Seijiro has to go back to Tokyo soon after, and they promise each other to meet again a year later. However, Seijiro gets jailed for five years. Unable to find him, Shizue gets married to a yakuza boss who can help her family business.
Acting
Tsuruta's stoic suffering—one glance says five years of prison.
Direction
Yamashita's operatic framing turns violence into tragic ballet.
Score
Melodramatic strings that dare you not to feel everything.
Director
Kōsaku Yamashita
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
JP
