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04-04-2009, 3:10 PM danconia76 Joined on 05-28-2007 Posts 6 The Yakuza - Sydney Pollack I cannot say enough good things about this film starring Robert Mitchum and the greatest of all Japanese actors - Takakura Ken. It is quite likely my favorite film. If you can put aside the face-value conception of "Giri" or "obligation/duty" that the film centers on, and understand it for what it is - that being the implementation and execution of justice in one's life and actions - you will be able to truly appreciate this stunning work of art that shockingly pays perfect homage to Japan's most pro-American, pro-individualist film genre - Ninkyo Eiga. This is a film about what it means to "owe someone something" and the why of it. What do we owe? Where does obligation come from? Why is it important? The Japanese characters in the film are bogart-like in their closed mouth explanations. No need. Their faces say it all. They are the last knights of the round table. Living in a dying world where friendship, honor, love and truth are replaced by something unholy and evil. This is the ultimate swan song to the lone wolf, standing sword in hand, against the barbarians - in our lives and out there. The enemy is this film is that monster which Toohey feeds upon in The Fountainhead but did not create. It is not an individual or group. It is that lacking of ethics, of integrity, in so many people, that one does not always know where to strike out first.    Report

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