Blackmail Is My Life

Very stylish and innovative, this also moves at a furious pace. Excitingly and beautifully shot, this is a tale of four youngsters setting out on a career as blackmailers as they seem to have been passed by in the post-war Japanese boom. It can be a bit confusing with so many characters and the usual, bluff, double bluff and downright betrayal. The story is told both backwards and forwards and often the only way to tell of a flashback is that it begins in b/w, slowly turning to colour for most of the sequence, except for the times that it doesn't! There are so many stand out sequences but a colour sequence of consensual lovemaking intercut with one that is certainly not consensual in b/w is particularly effective. Outstanding camera-work and direction ensure that this looks and feels great all the time and if the ending is a little melodramatic, it is still enthusiastically shot with hand held and whirling cameras.

The main character, Shun, characterized as a 'young punk' with his group of youthful, attractive social outcast friends, finds money in the business of blackmail in the underworld of an economically vibrant Japan. While riding high off a string of successful extortions of small time yakuza affiliates, their ill fated plot to steal a sensitive memorandum proves they have bitten off more than they can chew. I was initially impressed with the movie's style and pace and it seemed to be setting up a fun movie surrounding the exploits of this group of young bright eyed kids. I enjoyed how each character was given scenes that showcase them while Shun is still given the most back-story. That is all done in a pretty successfully stylized manner. But the main plot fails to really stimulate after the first 45 minutes of setup. I think the problem was that stealing a memorandum for money just wasn't as exciting as events that happened earlier in the movie and Fukasaku gets little heavy handed communicating themes in this later part of the movie, causing a few eye rolls on my part. A well shot movie- perhaps not the most realistic premise, and enjoyable, but not super thrilling.

I noticed that IMDb lists this as a crime film AND a comedy. Well, there's nothing funny about the film--it's not at all a comedy. Instead, the film is about four low-lifes who make a career out of blackmailing people and fighting various mobs (who SHOULD have been able to smash them like bugs but somehow didn't throughout much of the film). For them, it all seems to be for the thrills and laughs--the money is secondary. However, the deeper the risk the greater the thrills--so they keep biting off more and more and more. You figure that eventually they'll get in way over their heads. And that is when their friend Zero (a black guy--which is quite unusual for a Japanese film) is killed, things look really bad for these bizarre anti-heroes.

While this film is quite different from the usual mobster film of the time, it still is a pretty ordinary crime drama. It was reasonably entertaining but no more. For those who like the genre, it's worth seeing--for others, probably not.

Blackmail is My Life is one of four films that Fukasaku produced in that year and once again affirms not only his brilliant visual style but the incredible energy of the whole crew that worked with him. You have to see this film wide on a big screen to see how beautifully it is shot and composed. It moves fast but the visual strategies show Fukasaku's control over his world and produce a great viewing experience before you even have to delve into the brutal world of Japanese low lifes and the power of the political world that exists at the time. This film fits in comfortably with other films of the time from all over the globe where power and politics were being critiqued and examined from every angle and genre available.

How can a movie about low-lives using blackmail to get out of their scummy life be so much fun, and still carry a message about social corruption and racism? First, by being restlessly energetic. All the new wave film techniques are used here, jump cuts, flashbacks, moving whirling hand-held cameras, sharp angles.. The movie never slows down except for a few delicious very physical love scenes, the complex story is told through the action. A movie that seems made in a rush and is much better for it.

The stylish 60s fashions, amoral but sexy protagonists, pop art photography and snappy music make this movie fun. It also makes it easier to take the extremely cynical message underlying the whole film. The antiheroes on display are like rats in a sewer (a dead rat is a recurring image). They hang on to the memory of the few happy moments they had, and keep reliving it. They think they blackmail for money, but they are really acting to get back at the Big guys, to prove that even scum can rise above their station. Their friendship and bond comes out of necessity and common experience. But their chance at the big lights is fleeting: going out with a famous actress for a moment may be thrilling, but our heroes do not belong in that world .

The film portrays a Japan ruled by corruption, where mavericks and half-breeds have to scrape to survive. Nobody is good, starting with all of the seedy blackmail "victims". The film has very dark and cynical outlook, but don't let that description phase you, this is also an incredibly fun film to watch, with action, humor and overabundant style. Most critics rank this movie as one of the director's lesser films. I think it deserves much better. Definitely recommended to those who love 60s gangster movies.