Attack! Hakata Street Gangs

Gang war breaks out in the streets of Hakata in a feature length Sogo Ishii’s film that is more facinating in depicting its own time than as a story driven movie. The film doesn’t shine technically, but does offer an interesting, almost documentaristic view of a Japan that is not so often seen in movies. While realistic gang films are nothing new, directors like Kinji Fukasaku usually tell more cinematic stories set in higher levels of society. Ishii’s camera descends to the grassroot level and shows the small time street gangs that operate in the less wealthy neighborhoods in smaller cities far away from Tokyo or Osaka.