Yoidore tenshi (1948)

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Keinosuke Uekusa (written by)
Akira Kurosawa (written by)

Release Date:

30 December 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

A drunken doctor with a hot temper and a violence-prone gangster with tuberculosis form a quicksilver bond.

Plot Keywords:

Doctor | Gangster | Tuberculosis | Yakuza | Alcoholic

Awards:

4 wins

Cast

Takashi Shimura	...	Sanada
Toshirô Mifune	...	Matsunaga
Reisaburô Yamamoto	...	Okada
Michiyo Kogure	...	Nanae
Chieko Nakakita	...	Miyo
Noriko Sengoku	...	Gin
Shizuko Kasagi	...	Singer
Eitarô Shindô	...	Takahama
Masao Shimizu	...	Oyabun
Taiji Tonoyama	...	Shop Proprietor
Yoshiko Kuga	...	Schoolgirl
Chôko Iida	...	Bâya
Ko Ubukata	...	Punk
Akira Tani	...	Yakuza Follower
Sachio Sakai	...	Guitar Player

Also Known As:

Drunken Angel (International: English title)

Runtime:

98 min | Japan:150 min (director's cut) | USA:102 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-15 (2005) | Australia:PG | Sweden:15 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:PG | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Toho Studios, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

First of many collaborations between Toshirô Mifune and Akira Kurosawa

Quotes:

Dr. Sanada: He tormented you, made you sick, and then deserted you like a puppy. And you still wag your tail and follow him.

Soundtrack:

Kosame no uta

Great movie ... where's the DVD?

I loved this movie for many reasons:

The film history : it's the first collaboration between Akira Kurosawa (director) and Toshiro Mifune (actor) that continued through 15 more films including the sublime Rashomon, Seven Samurai and Yojimbo.

The style : it's a great film noir with gangsters, zoot suits, speakeasy's, gambling etc.,

The history : post WW II Japan is a frightening place with rubble, raw sewage, crime and hope. It's a world I hadn't seen before.

Toshiro Mifune : What an amazing actor. He oozes charisma and you cannot take your eyes off of him. His performance reminded me of the first time I saw Russell Crowe, in a little seen mediocre movie called "For the Moment" which I watched many times because of Crowe's intensity.

My only problem is the copy I saw was terrible. The print was faded and half of the subtitles were illegible. When will this be released on DVD? It's not Kurosawa's best film, but it's certainly better than most of the drivel out there.