Yakuza Weapon [Blu-ray + DVD]

As a big fan of Tak Sakaguchi films in specific and Japanese films in general, I couldn't wait to get my hands on Yakuza Weapon. Actor, martial artist and stunt man, Tak Sakaguchi made his name not just in Japanese cinema but action and obscure film as a whole with roles in such films as the cult favorite Versus, Death Trance, Battlefield Baseball, Azumi 2, etc. Now in Yakuza Weapon, a release by Sushi Typhoon, Nikkatsu and Well Go USA, Tak Sakaguchi plays Shozo Iwaki, a tough-as-nails Yakuza with a mad dog approach to battling his enemies. He is actually son to boss of the Iwaki family - one of the most powerful crime families in Japan - and as such, he is out to make a name for himself and usher the family into the new age of Yakuza business. But before that, he goes overseas to fight in a militarized zone, though the exact location and reason are absent from the film so far as I can tell.

When he returns to his beloved Japan four years later, much has changed. His father has been assassinated by Yakuza underboss Kurawaki, who has the ambitious plans of taking over not just the Iwaki crime business but that of all the Yakuza families in Japan. When Shozo learns of Kurawaki's treachery, he seeks him out. Full of vengeance, Shozo wreaks havoc on Japan, blasting, blowing up, puching, kicking and insulting his way to his target. All the while, he is pursued by the beautiful, overly smitten Nayoko, the daughter of a Yakuza boss and new head of that family, whom Shozo promised to marry upon his return to Japan.

What follows is an orgy of violence, mechanic body alterations, unhealthy sexual obsessions, dildos, irreverent humor, more violence, betrayal, a battalion of drug-addled zombies, genital rocket launchers and nipple machine guns, and when all is said and done love and revenge.

Also, Yoshihiro Nishimura was involved in the prosthetics and other effects, and one can always be sure his involvement in any film will make it that much better.

Like so many other Japanese films of its kind - Machine Girl, RoboGeisha, Helldriver, Battlefield Baseball, Death Trance, Versus, Samurai Princess, Meatball Machine, Ichi the Killer, Hard Revenge Milly, etc. - I absolutely recommend this one.

The DVD box describes this as "hard edged" action. Simply stated, this is Japanese grindhouse.

The plot is fairly simple. Shozo (Tak Sakaguchi), who is a great fighter, but not the sharpest tack in the box, returns to Japan to discover his crime boss father has been over-thrown. He opts to get his empire back. About midway through the film he is transformed into the man you see on the cover. The action is over the top, sometimes 3 Stooges style. In an early scene a man steps on a landmine and uses it to blow himself up so he can soar through the air and land in the enemy camp.

The story includes bad hair pieces, lines from American films, school girl uniforms, pink ooze squirting from a cell phone, a nurse with Freddy's claw, and a man who dodges bullets. This is for extreme grindhouse fans who enjoy immature bloody movies. If you didn't enjoy the American "Planet Terror" or "Smokin' Aces" films, you should pass on this one. The comedy is called "manga style." It is similar to what we call "mid-brow" humor...like listening to Lou Reed, but without any political commentary. I might have to watch a few more of these films before I can decide if I really like them or not. English subtitles are used in the film and in the extra features.

Parental Guide: F-bombs, sex, and weird nudity. Excessive blood, killing, and violence.

As with most B movies to come from Japan, this one IS NOT FOR CHILDREN.. it campy and extremely violent, loaded with nudity, gore, unbelievable acts of violence and perversion...this is an ABSOLUTE MUST for any fan of B-movies!