Full Metal Yakuza (1997)

Miike Has Done Much Better Yakuza Films

"Full Metal Yakuza," is not one of Miike's better films. In fact, I found it to be a big disappointment. The first time I viewed it, I could not get through the film. It was only when I had nothing to do that I decided to give this film another look. The film centers on a character named Hagane (Tsuyoshi Ujiki) who looks up to his mentor the yakuza boss named Tosa (Takeshi Caesar). Tosa has been locked up in the films beginning due to a hit he made on an opposing yakuza boss and his minions. [And with a samurai sword to boot]. Hagane does have some very funny character traits, especially the way he looks up to his boss. While his boss has been locked up for the past 8 years, Hagane has been given the menial jobs of a lower yakuza. He cannot wait until the day that Tosa is released. That day finally comes--and when it does, things will not be the same for Hagane again.

Now, it is apparent when viewing this particular Miike film that he was having a bit of fun. And I will be the first to admit, that there a few scenes here and there which were funny. But on the whole, the film is not good. As Tosa is released from prison, other members of the yakuza clans get together to eliminate him. And while they succeed, Hagane is also caught up in the middle. When the viewer next sees Hagane, he has been put together as part robot and part human. Plus, he has incredible powers. Moreover, he must eat metal in order to gain his strength. Hagane discovers that he and Tosa were set up by his own clan. This angers him and he seeks revenge. Also in the middle of this all is Tosa's ex-mistress Naomi (Momoko Nishida). Something occurs to her that will put Hagane into a kill mode. [Not that he already wasn't].

I have not seen all of Miike's films, however, I found this one the weakest of any I have ever seen. I even wonder if it would garner great reviews if it was not a Miike film. The self-isolation that Hagane puts himself through is a bit corny. In fact, I found the entire film quite lame. Also, I believe that this was without a doubt the silliest ending of all of the Miike films I have seen thus far. The characters in the film probably tried to keep a straight face on this particular Miike film. I give credit to Miike for constantly striving to come up with something new all the time. For the most part, he has been successful in many of his films in pushing the envelope. However, this film does not succeed on several levels, one of which is that it is not very funny. What comedic elements are thrown into the film fall flat. And the action scenes are bit silly. Not to mention the scene involving Naomi, were not needed at all, and in fact brought the film down a notch. This is not a good film, even though Miike fans will tell you otherwise. Not recommended. Unless you are a die hard Miike fan, in which case whatever I write really wouldn't matter. October 23, 2007

One of Miike's most underrated

Ignore the unjust criticism from some of these clueless reviewers. I can't understand descriptions that include "ill conceived" with Full Metal Yakuza. It is a simple story, executed in a clear manner. The film has an emotional core at its center which balances the horrific violence and dark humour. One of Miike's most fast paced and entertaining films, and the ending does make sense! if you were paying attention. August 2, 2005

Nostalgic hommage...

so it seems to me at least. The story of FMY is very childish and also being told in a childish way: a young criminal wants to be more (bigger, better, stronger, respected) than he actually is. Nobody can take this man too seriously so they push him around and make fun of him, even street thiefes can't take it seriously when he calls himself "a dangerous yakuza". The young man is the only loyal guy to his boss, as the boss is his big idol. When both of them get shot down a mad, young scientist is partly fusing their bodies together with electronic cyborg tools. When the young criminal is back on the streets, some other criminals happen to cross his way again, this time being forced to to painfully learn that things had changed meanwhile.

The cartoonish presentation of that scientist, the flat but a little thrilling storyline, some characters, they all remind me of some cheap action/horror/scifi video sessions I did years ago. There is (I guess) no background message, nothing at all like this, it is just an entertaining story of a boy-turned-dangerous. It never gets as satirical as verhoevens Robocop. Also due to the fact that the hero is a criminal in this flick. I found the movie better and better everytime I watched it (saw it 3 times so far). The fact that I rewatched it at all is pretty strange to me as I did not like the film this much. But then, I guess it must be this nostalgic feeling the movie causes, the cheap effects (blue lightnings on the body when it is raining, cheap noises when he moves his cyborg body parts etc.), mediocre but engaging acting, a little emotion in a weird way: the yakuza boss inside of him is still in love with a sweet japaneese girl. This also affects his way of movement, he feels like going to some place for unknown reasons, than they meet and have a pretty melancholic time on the beach, a somehow unexpected mood to the rest of the film. Talking of which, in the last 15 minutes it becomes clear that Miike shot this movie when the yakuza kidnap the girl, brutally rape her (even her dead body...) while one of the cyborg eyes is lying next to the scene, forcing the cyborg criminal to witness the whole thing. Plus, there is also some silly stuff to be found here like his fighting strategies that look like bad comedy. Definetly intended sillyness.

Some grown-up once-teenage-video-freaks like me will probably like or even love this movie. Others will turn their heads off as there's not as much action and overall entertainment as in Robocop, not as much violance as in other Miike movies, a pretty solid thing in the end. But then, there's not much in common here with Robocop, except for the main theme. April 5, 2005

Just a note

To the reviewer below and others who might find that the Full Metal Yakuza disc is displaying in a cropped full screen image rather than proper widescreen, this is not a fault in the disc itself. You need to consult your DVD player's manual and adjust the display from 4:3 to 16:9.

Also, regarding the implication that this version of the film is "edited," if you're referring to the digital blurring in some of the scenes, this was done by Miike himself. Don't ask me why. July 16, 2004

Not top-notch Miike, but still good

Full Metal Yakuza is Miike lite. As is often the case with his films, it's entertaining and outrageous and tastelessly funny, but it lacks the depth and feeling of, say, the first two Dead or Alive films or Ichi the Killer. FMY was made on a low budget as a V-cinema title (Japan's direct-to-video market), and lacks the polish of some of Miike's other work, but I think most Miike fans would enjoy it. July 7, 2004

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