Rififi in Tokyo (1963)
"Rififi à Tokyo" (original title)

Van Ekken, an old gangster, arrives in Tokyo to direct a bank hold-up, to get a very valuable diamond, so big it's named Titan. Riquet was to be his second-in-command, but a rival gang ... See full summary »

Director:

Jacques Deray

Writers:

Auguste Le Breton (novel), José Giovanni (adaptation),

Stars:

Karlheinz Böhm, Charles Vanel, Barbara Lass

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Karlheinz Böhm	...	Carl Mersen
Charles Vanel	...	Van Hekken
Barbara Lass	...	Françoise Merigne
Keiko Kishi	...	Asami
Michel Vitold	...	Merigne
Eiji Okada	...	Danny Riquet
Masao Oda	...	Kan
Dante Maggio
Hideaki Suzuki
Eijirô Yanagi	...	Ishimoto

Storyline

Van Ekken, an old gangster, arrives in Tokyo to direct a bank hold-up, to get a very valuable diamond, so big it's named Titan. Riquet was to be his second-in-command, but a rival gang shoots him down before the big day. Marsen, Riquet's friend, substitutes for him. Françoise, the companion of another gang member, will compromise the attack to the vault, but eventually they get past that. Yet, not all the gangsters will make it out of the security vault - and Van Ekken, caught, and having lost face, will do as an old Samurai...

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Plot Keywords:

vault | gangster | place name in title | tokyo japan | revenge | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

29 March 1963 (France)

Also Known As:

Rififi in Tokyo

Filming Locations:

Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Compagnia Cinematografica Mondiale (CCM), Compagnie Internationale de Productions Cinématographiques (CIPRA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Future husband and wife more than 17 years after the making of this film, 'Karlheinz Böhm' and Barbara Lass, then respectively married to actress Gudula Blau and movie maker Roman Polanski, met on the shooting of this film.

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Connections

Edited into Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 9 (2002)

User Reviews

Terrific Heist Movie

It's unfortunate that this gem is so little known, which I'm sure is due in part to its attempt to trade on the name of the original 1955 Rififi, a genuine certified masterpiece. Still this is a very satisfying caper film in its own right, combining the hard-bitten characters and no-nonsense tone of the earlier Rififi with a target that would not be out-of-place in many recent thrillers, namely a high-tech bank vault in Tokyo. I was fortunate enough to see this on a double bill with Un Homme est Mort (The Outside Man), Jacques Deray's existential French-hitman-in-Los-Angeles picture, which is also highly recommended.