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Tokyo Drifter (1966)

Tôkyô nagaremono (original title)
Not Rated | | Action, Crime | 10 April 1966 (Japan)
Tokyo Drifter Poster
After his gang disbands, a yakuza enforcer looks forward to life outside of organized crime but soon must become a drifter after his old rivals attempt to assassinate him.

Director:

Seijun Suzuki

Writers:

Yasunori Kawauchi (author), Yasunori Kawauchi (screenplay)

Stars:

Tetsuya Watari, Chieko Matsubara, Hideaki Nitani | See full cast & crew »
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Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tetsuya Watari ... Tetsuya 'Phoenix Tetsu' Hondo
Chieko Matsubara Chieko Matsubara ... Chiharu
Hideaki Nitani Hideaki Nitani ... Kenji Aizawa
Tamio Kawaji Tamio Kawaji ... Tatsuzo, The Viper (as Tamio Kawachi)
Ryûji Kita Ryûji Kita ... Kurata
Eiji Gô Eiji Gô ... Tanaka
Isao Tamagawa Isao Tamagawa ... Umetani
Eimei Esumi Eimei Esumi ... Otsuka
Tomoko Hamakawa Tomoko Hamakawa ... Mutsuko
Tsuyoshi Yoshida Tsuyoshi Yoshida ... Keiichi
Michio Hino Michio Hino ... Yoshii
Shuntarô Tamamura Shuntarô Tamamura ... Koyanagi
Hiroshi Midorikawa Hiroshi Midorikawa
Hiroshi Chô Hiroshi Chô ... Kumamoto
Akira Hisamatsu Akira Hisamatsu ... (as Kosuke Hisamatsu)
See full cast »
Edit

Storyline

Tetsu has joined his yakuza boss in going straight, but when a rival gang threatens to bring them back into the gang wars, Tetsu must become a drifter to keep the pressure off his old boss. Written by Erik Gregersen <erik@astro.as.utexas.edu>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

yakuza | principled man | debt | loan | property | See All (25) »

Genres:

Action | Crime

Certificate:

Not Rated | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
Edit

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese | English

Release Date:

10 April 1966 (Japan) See more »

Also Known As:

Tokyo Drifter See more »

Filming Locations:

Akasaka, Minato, Japan See more »

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nikkatsu See more »
Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See full technical specs »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

That is lead actor Tetsuya Watari singing the title song. See more »

Quotes

Tetsuya 'Phoenix Tetsu' Hondo: A drifter needs no woman.
See more »

Connections

Followed by Zoku Tokyo nagaremono - Umi wa makka na koi no iro (1966) See more »

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User Reviews

 
Sweet
30 March 2001 | by zetes – See all my reviews

Having previously seen Branded to Kill on its Criterion release, and having found it to be utterly brilliant, I had to buy the Criterion release of Tokyo Drifter. It is not as good as Branded to Kill (heck, nothing can be), but it is still great. The color composition is particularly masterful. So what if the story is difficult to follow? It is still entertaining. I really wish more of Sezuki Seijun's films would be released by Criterion, or anyone else, for that matter. He's an extraordinarily interesting and gifted filmmaker who is very underappreciated in cinema history.
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