Minbo: El arte de la extorsión

I have been so happy and satisfied to watch that Itami's movie. I have seen so many yakuza films, from the best contemporary directors of the gender (Fukasaku, Kitano, Miike), but maybe this is the first time I had the feeling of watching a real approach to yakuza's reality. Many books and studies on Japanese cinema says that the so famous Fukasaku's "Battles Without and Humanity" gives a more real image of what yakuza is, where traditional gentlemen behaviors are substituted by more rude and bloody ones. And it's true, but anyway Fukasaku's films still provided a very unreal image of Japanese gangsters, who spread their deaths in thousands of litres of blood. Itami's "Minbo no onna" goes further and shows reality, the dark reality that yakuza does not want to be known (and because of it, Itami was attacked by some yakuza members). This movie shows us that yakuza is not another dimension of Japanese society, but it is actually a dangerous and active part of it. "Minbo no onna" is a very iconoclastic film too, because it definitely breaks the romantic image of the Japanese criminal societies and shows all their bad points: cowardice, lack of honor (they just appear to be interested on it, but they actually have no honor), pure interest on money... 100% reality. Not to be missed.