When Survival Isn’t Enough to Heal

Read Time:5 Minute, 18 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Jakoman & Tetsu
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Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Year Released: 1964, 88 Films Blu-ray 2025
Runtime: 1h 40m
Director(s): Kinji Fukasaku
Writer(s): Keizo Kajino, Akira Kurosawa, Senkichi Taniguchi
Cast: Ken Takakura, Tetsuro Tamba, Isao Yamagata, Yōko Minamida, Kumeko Urabe, Wakaba Irie, Hizuru Takachiho, Shinjirō Ehara, Shirō Ōsaka
Where to Watch: Available now, order your copy here: www.88-films.myshopify.com, www.mvdshop.com, or www.amazon.com

RAVING REVIEW: A director’s early dive into unfamiliar territory can often leave behind work that's rougher, riskier, and, at times, more revealing than the hits that follow. JAKOMAN & TETSU, made in 1964 by Kinji Fukasaku, is one of those early explorations that feels both raw and profound. Based on Keizo Kajino’s novel ‘Nishin gyogyo’ and adapted through a script written by Keizo Kajino, Akira Kurosawa, and Senkichi Taniguchi, it reflects a moment when Fukasaku was still shaping his voice but already showed signs of his future thematic obsessions.

The story unfolds on the icy edges of Hokkaido shortly after World War II, where a small village survives by gambling each year on the unpredictable herring season. The delicate balance of this struggling community is thrown off when Jakoman, a hardened, one-eyed criminal, comes back into town. Jakoman's arrival, driven by an old grudge against fishery boss Kyubei, soon infects the village, setting off a slow, bitter unraveling of trust and unity.

Kyubei’s long-lost son, Tetsu, unexpectedly returns from presumed death at the front lines, finding his home caught in the rising tide of resentment. Ken Takakura, early in his career but already carrying an undeniable screen presence, steps into the role with a blend of sincerity and subtle bravado. Unlike many of his later roles defined by stoicism, Takakura’s Tetsu feels raw, stumbling back into a world where simple right and wrong have been muddied by years of hardship and betrayal.

Across from him stands Tetsurō Tanba, delivering a performance as Jakoman that refuses to reduce the character to a stock villain. There's anger, certainly, but also an undeniable pain beneath it. Jakoman doesn’t tear apart the village out of mindless cruelty—his revenge feels earned, even understandable, complicating the moral landscape of the film.

Visually, the film leans into the harshness of its setting. Hokkaido’s snow-blanketed cliffs and endless grey skies aren’t just scenery—they mirror the emotional frost gripping the characters. While much of the film’s atmosphere succeeds in pulling viewers into this battered world, the middle portion falters slightly. Fukasaku’s deliberate pacing, which effectively builds tension early on, occasionally lapses into a sense of inertia. Several subplots, particularly the growing unrest among the workers and Yuki’s unresolved history with Jakoman, don't fully connect until the story has already built toward its climax.

The film explores the broader theme of a country struggling to mend the fractures left by war. Jakoman’s vendetta is personal, but it’s clear the wounds he exploits in the village run deeper than one man’s grudge. Fukasaku taps into the anxiety of a nation rebuilding with broken foundations, where betrayals fester because the world has no real solutions for them.

The release from 88 Films does the movie a solid service despite the condition of the elements. The supplementary features enhance the overall experience. A commentary track by Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp dissects Fukasaku’s development as a filmmaker and situates this work within his career.

For audiences familiar with Fukasaku’s later, pulse-pounding crime dramas, adjusting to the measured burn of JAKOMAN & TETSU might take some patience. However, meeting the film on its terms rewards viewers with a richer, more grounded exploration of anger, regret, and the scars we carry long after the battles are over.

One point where the film could have been even stronger lies in how the secondary arcs were handled. If characters like Osaka and Yuki had been pushed to the forefront earlier, pulling their struggles into the main narrative, the emotional stakes at the climax would have resonated even louder.

There’s no mistaking the signs of a storyteller already comfortable swimming in moral gray areas. JAKOMAN & TETSU might not hit in the way Fukasaku’s later films would, but it hums with tension, regret, and the stubborn flickers of hope that even the coldest landscapes can't fully stamp out. Rather than wrapping its characters in redemption or cinematic fireworks, the film leaves them—and us—to sit with the uncomfortable truth that some wounds never close. And for all its bruises and rough edges, that lingering ache is exactly what makes this early entry from Fukasaku so worth remembering.

Bonus Materials:
HIGH DEFINITION BLU-RAY PRESENTATION IN 2.35:1 ASPECT RATIO
ORIGINAL MONO 2.0 AUDIO WITH NEW ENGLISH SUBTITLES
AUDIO COMMENTARY BY TOM MES & JASPER SHARP
BRAND NEW FILMED INTRODUCTION BY MARK SCHILLING
STILLS GALLERY
BOOKLET ESSAY BY CHRIS D.
ORIGINAL AND NEWLY COMMISSIONED ARTWORK BY SEAN LONGMORE

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[photo courtesy of 88 FILMS, MVD ENTERTAINMENT]

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