There is truth in advertising with the title Violent Streets; bloodletting and levels of sex and savagery for director Hideo Gosha's noirish yakuza-crime pulp fiction are extreme. How Quentin Tarantino missed championing the downbeat item we do not know.
Egawa (Noboru Ando) is a retired Tokyo gangster—former head of an entire criminal clan, in fact—who prefers his more sedate life (not to say there still aren't nasty fights) as manager of a flamenco-themed nightclub in the Ginza District. The place was a dubious retirement gift of his old boss in the "Tagiku Group," an allied mob syndicate who have supposedly gone straight, with legitimate business interests.
But trouble mounts for Egawa. The Tagiku take back the club in a power maneuver against a rival coalition of hard guys from Osaka—who are also blamed when a female pop idol signed to Tagiku's entertainment division, is seized in a ransom-kidnapping (that goes horribly wrong). But those perpetrators are actually a younger bunch of hoods formerly close to Egawa and recklessly wanting the action-packed old days back.
Soon a mob war rages, with the grim Egowa caught in the middle and no less deadly for his supposed retirement. Old scores are avenged, cars smash through glass doors, the red stuff flows, and memorable killers include a spooky transvestite (the actor billed as "Madame Joy") who razor-slashes victims.
Though not as surreal as other way-out crime-genre directors, like the notorious Seijun Suziki, Gosha delivers the grim goods with bursts of panache and a few striking juxtapositions. More than one gunfight happens shot through a coop full of white chickens—and it will doubtless dismay viewers that some of the terrified birds are apparently killed on camera. World-weary-looking lead thespian Ando was genuine, a former yakuza who transitioned into writing and acting in crime pictures. The scar on his face is not makeup. A nihilistic fadeout is consistent, anyhow, with the yarn's no-win worldview.
What public library shelves would this film be suitable for?
Violent Streets would find a suitable place on library shelves dedicated to noirish yakuza-crime pulp fiction, Japanese cinema, and crime-genre films. The extreme nature of the film, characterized by bloodletting and explicit content, aligns it with collections focused on gritty and intense cinematic experiences.
Given its Japanese origin, the film could be categorized in the section for Far East/Asian cinema, particularly under the subgenre of "grindhouse" content. This placement would allow enthusiasts of international cinema, with a taste for raw and unconventional storytelling, to discover and explore Violent Streets.
Considering the film's emphasis on mob wars, retired gangsters, and criminal intrigue, it would also fit well within collections dedicated to crime pictures, providing a glimpse into the underworld narratives portrayed by the director Hideo Gosha.
However, due to its explicit and sordid nature, Violent Streets may not be suitable for mainstream audiences. Therefore, it could be positioned as a strong optional purchase for libraries catering to a more niche audience interested in the darker and more intense aspects of film storytelling.