Jakoman to Tetsu

One more lost film from the great Japanese film director, but not a Yakuza this time. Rather an adventure drama taking place in our era, but which I could not easily follow because the absence of subtitles. This tells the rivalry between two men, but not in the way the US movie industry would have given us for such a topic. It is very Oriental, Japanese way of story telling that you deal with here, very subtle, and also complex for western not Asian - audiences. This is a shame that I could not have the subs, because I missed many things. Not much action nor bloodshed, but a truly good movie.

Certainly the draw to Jakoman to Tetsu (Jakoman and Tetsu) is the screenplay co-written by Akira Kurosawa, based on the script for the 1949 original. Since the likelihood of ever seeing that version seems remote it was a thrill to come across Kinji Fukasaku's 1964 version, although how similar it is to the Senkichi Taniguchi version will have to wait for another cinematic miracle.

Just after the war temporary fisherman are hired at the remote Hokkaido fishing station run by the avaricious owner but when a poacher, Jakoman (Tetsuro Tamba) comes seeking revenge for his stolen boat - and basically moves into the place until he ruins the owner - tensions rise. Unexpectedly, Tetsu (Ken Takakura), the youngest son who had been thought drowned returns, and he begins to even the scales with sensible moderation and a refreshing calm as the fishing season begins. Kurosawa's voice can definitely be heard, the focus on the impoverished fishermen, the wildness of Jakoman (a role seemingly tailor made for Toshirio Mifune although he actually played Tetsu in the '49), and a strike against the owner right at the critical moment all seem to have his fingerprints and it would have been interesting to have had his directorial take although Fukasaku is definitely up to the task.

It's well made and captures the desperation of the post-War years as Japan transitioned to a modern industrial power from its more traditional past. Worth seeing.