was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Known for his "broad range and innovative filmmaking," Fukasaku worked in many different genres and styles, but was best known for his gritty yakuza films, typified by the ''Battles Without Honor and Humanity'' series (1973–1976). According to the

Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive The Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA, formerly abbreviated as BAM/PFA) are a combined art museum, repertory movie theater, and archive associated with the University of California, Berkeley. Lawrence Rinder was Director from ...

, "his turbulent energy and at times extreme violence express a cynical critique of social conditions and genuine sympathy for those left out of Japan's postwar prosperity." He used a ''

cinema verite ''Cinema Verite'' is a 2011 HBO drama film directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini. The film's main ensemble cast starred Diane Lane, Tim Robbins, James Gandolfini and Patrick Fugit. The film follows a fictionalized account of the ...

''-inspired shaky camera technique in many of his films from the early 1970s. Fukasaku wrote and directed over 60 films between 1961 and 2003. Some Western sources have associated him with the

Japanese New Wave The is a group of loosely-connected Japanese filmmakers during the late 1950s and into the 1970s. Although they did not make up a coherent movement, these artists shared a rejection of traditions and conventions of classical Japanese cinema in ...

movement of the '60s and '70s, but this belies his commercial success. His works include the Japanese portion of the

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

war film ''

Tora! Tora! Tora! ''Tora! Tora! Tora!'' ( ja, トラ・トラ・トラ！) is a 1970 epic film, epic war film that dramatizes the Empire of Japan, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The film was produced by Elmo Williams and directed by Richard Fleischer, T ...

'' (1970), '' jidaigeki'' such as '' Shogun's Samurai'' (1978), the

space opera Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, it features technological and soci ...

Message from Space is a 1978 Japanese space opera film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It stars Sonny Chiba, Etsuko Shihomi, and Vic Morrow. Produced by Toei with a cost between the equivalent of US$5 and 6 million, it was the most expensive film made in Japan at t ...

'' (1978), the post-apocalyptic science fiction film ''

Virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsky's 1 ...

'' (1980), the

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered a form of speculative fiction alongside science fiction f ...

Samurai Reincarnation is a 1981 Japanese fantasy film written and directed by Kinji Fukasaku and starring Sonny Chiba, Kenji Sawada, and Hiroyuki Sanada. It is based on the novel of the same name by Futaro Yamada. The film was nominated for three Awards of the Jap ...

'' (1981), and the influential dystopian thriller '' Battle Royale'' (2000). Fukasaku won the

Japan Academy Film Prize for Director of the Year The of the Japan Academy Film Prize The , often called the Japan Academy Prize, the Japan Academy Awards, and the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series of awards given annually since 1978 by the Japan Academy Film Prize Association (日本ア� ...

three times, out of nine total nominations. He served as President of the

Directors Guild of Japan The is a trade union created to represent the interests of film directors in the film industry in Japan. It was founded in 1936, with Minoru Murata serving as the first president, and has continued to this day apart from a period between 1943 and ...

from 1996, until his death from

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

in 2003. In 1997, he received the Purple Medal of Honor from the Japanese government for his work in film. His films have inspired directors such as

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

, William Friedkin, and John Woo.

Early life

Kinji Fukasaku was born in 1930 in

Mito Mito may refer to: Places *Mito, Ibaraki, capital city of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan *Mito, Aichi, a Japanese town *Mito, Shimane, a Japanese town * Mitō, Yamaguchi, a Japanese town * Mito District, a district in the province of Concepción, Per ...

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,871,199 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

as the youngest of five children. When he was 15 years old, Fukasaku's class was drafted, and he worked as a munitions worker during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In July 1945, the class was caught in bombing. Since the children could not escape the bombs, they had to dive under each other in order to survive. The surviving members of the class had to dispose of the corpses. After the war, he spent much of his time watching foreign films.

Career

Fukasaku studied cinema at

Nihon University , abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice (Japan), Minister of Justice, in 1889. ...

, in the country's first film department, before switching to the literature department for scriptwriting his junior year. There he studied under

Kogo Noda was a Japanese screenwriter most famous for collaborating with Yasujirō Ozu on many of the director's films. Born in Hakodate, Noda was the son of the head of the local tax bureau and younger brother to Kyūho, a Nihonga painter. He moved to Na ...

and Katsuhito Inomata. After graduating in 1953, Fukasaku became an assistant director at Toei in June 1954, where he worked under people such as Masahiro Makino and

Yasushi Sasaki (25 January 1908 – 13 September 1993), aka Kō Sasaki, was a Japanese film director. He directed films from the 1920s to the 1960s. Filmography Director He directed 182 films: * (1945) * (踊る龍宮城 ''Odoru ryū kyūjō'', literall ...

. Fukasaku made his directorial debut in 1961 with the two

featurette In the American film industry, a featurette is a kind of film that is shorter than a full-length feature, but longer than a short film. The term may refer to either of two types of content: a shorter film or a companion film. Medium-length film ...

s '' Drifting Detective: Tragedy in the Red Valley'' and '' Drifting Detective: Black Wind in the Harbor'', starring Sonny Chiba. His first feature-length film for the New Toei subsidiary was '' High Noon for Gangsters'' that same year. His first film produced in color was ''

Gang vs. G-Men is a 1962 Japanese color crime film, crime thriller film directed by Kinji Fukasaku starring Kōji Tsuruta, Shinichi Chiba, and Tetsurō Tamba. In an interview with Chris Desjardins contained in the book ''Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film'', Fuka ...

'' (1962). His first film for the Toei Company proper was ''

The Proud Challenge is a 1962 Japanese black-and-white crime action film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Plot Kuroki, a reporter for the trade paper ''Tekko Shinpo'', is investigating the arms manufacturer Mihara Industries on suspicion of the illegal trafficking of ...

'' the following year starring Kōji Tsuruta. He had his breakthrough hit in 1964 with Ken Takakura starring in '' Jakoman and Tetsu''. From 1966 to 1971, he created several modern gang films for Toei usually starring Tsuruta, such as ''Kaisanshiki'' (1967), ''Bakuto Kaisanshiki'' (1968) and ''

Japan Organized Crime Boss is a 1969 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Plot The Danno Organization, Japan's largest yakuza clan, expands outward from its base in Osaka during the post-war period under the leadership of Boss Danno and Chief Executive Tsubaki ...

'' (1969). Thanks to a non-exclusive contract, he also directed '' Black Lizard'', based on Yukio Mishima's stage adaptation of the

Edogawa Rampo , better known by the pen name was a Japanese author and critic who played a major role in the development of Japanese mystery and thriller fiction. Many of his novels involve the detective hero Kogoro Akechi, who in later books was the le ...

novel, and '' Black Rose Mansion'' for

Shochiku () is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not all ...

both of which starred the transvestite actor Akihiro Miwa. In 1968 he directed ''

The Green Slime is a 1968 tokusatsu science fiction film directed by Kinji Fukasaku and produced by Walter Manley and Ivan Reiner. It was written by William Finger, Tom Rowe and Charles Sinclair from a story by Reiner. The film was shot in Japan with a Japanes ...

'', a United States-Japan

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

co-production. In 1970, Fukasaku was recruited to direct the Japanese portion of another US-Japan film, ''

'', after Akira Kurosawa pulled out. Using his pay from the project, he bought the rights to adapt ''

Under the Flag of the Rising Sun is a 1972 Japanese film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It is based on two of the stories in Yūki Shōji's Naoki Prize-winning short story collection of the same name. The film was selected as the Japanese entry for the Academy Award for Best Foreig ...

''. The movie was critically acclaimed, even being selected as Japan's entry for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

45th Academy Awards The 45th Academy Awards were presented Tuesday, March 27, 1973, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California, honoring the best films of 1972. The ceremonies were presided over by Carol Burnett, Michael Caine, Charlton Heston, ...

in 1972, although it was not accepted as a nominee. That year also saw the release of ''

Street Mobster ''Street Mobster'', known in Japan as , is a 1972 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku and starring Bunta Sugawara and Noboru Ando. It is the sixth installment in Toei's ''Gendai Yakuza'' series of unrelated films by different director ...

'' starring Bunta Sugawara, which resulted in Toei producer Koji Shundo selecting Fukasaku to direct a groundbreaking

yakuza film is a popular film genre in Japanese cinema which focuses on the lives and dealings of ''yakuza'', Japanese organized crime syndicates. In the silent film era, depictions of ''bakuto'' (precursors to modern yakuza) as sympathetic Robin Hood-li ...

. '' Battles Without Honor and Humanity'' was released in 1973. Up to this point, Japan's many yakuza films had usually been tales of chivalry set in the pre-war period, but Fukasaku's ultra-violent, documentary-style film took place in chaotic post-War

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

. A commercial and critical success, it gave rise to seven sequels by Fukasaku and three movies that are based on the series but directed by others. After directing several more yakuza films, '' Graveyard of Honor'' (1975), ''

Cops vs. Thugs is a 1975 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It won two Blue Ribbon Awards in 1976: Best Director (Fukasaku) and Best Actor (Sugawara). ''Complex'' named it number 6 on their list of The 25 Best Yakuza Movies. Kino International rele ...

'' (1975), ''

Yakuza Graveyard ''Yakuza Graveyard'', known in Japan as , is a 1976 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. The screenplay by Kazuo Kasahara is based on a concept by Norimichi Matsudaira, Naoyuki Sugimoto and Kyo Namura. ''Complex'' named it number 17 o ...

'' (1976), and ''

Hokuriku Proxy War is a 1977 film directed by Kinji Fukasaku and starring Sonny Chiba and Hiroki Matsukata. Plot Kawada Noboru is a peasant from Mikuni who becomes a yakuza in the Tomiyasu Group in Fukui. He holds a letter from his boss Mr. Yasuhara promising tha ...

'' (1977), Fukasaku left the genre. He focused on historical epics; '' Shogun's Samurai'' (1978), ''

The Fall of Ako Castle is a 1978 Japanese historical martial arts period film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It depicts the story of the forty-seven Ronin (''Chūshingura''). The film is one of a series of period films by Fukasaku starring Yorozuya Kinnosuke, including ''S ...

'' (1978), ''

'' (1981); and science fiction; ''

'' (1978) and ''

'' (1980). ''Virus'' was Japan's most expensive production at the time, and became a financial flop. However, two years later he directed the acclaimed comedy ''

Fall Guy Fall guy is a colloquial phrase that refers to a person to whom blame is deliberately and falsely attributed in order to deflect blame from another party. Origin The origin of the term "fall guy" is unknown and contentious. Many sources place ...

'', which won both the

Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year The Japan Academy Film Prize for Picture of the Year is a film award given to the best film at the annual Japan Academy Film Prize The , often called the Japan Academy Prize, the Japan Academy Awards, and the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series ...

and

Kinema Junpo Award for Best Film of the Year The Kinema Junpo Awards for Best Film of the Year is given by ''Kinema Junpo , commonly called , is Japan's oldest film magazine and began publication in July 1919. It was first published three times a month, using the Japanese ''Jun'' (旬) sy ...

. Fukasaku was chosen to direct '' Violent Cop'' (1989), but a scheduling conflict caused him to pull out and Takeshi Kitano took over in his first directorial role. In 2000, '' Battle Royale'' was released. The film received positive critical praise and became a major financial success, grossing ¥3.11 billion domestically. It became a cultural phenomenon, creating the battle royale genre, a fictional narrative genre and/or mode of entertainment in which a select group of people are instructed to kill each off until there is a triumphant survivor. Near the end of his life, Fukasaku branched out into the world of video games by serving as the director of the

Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and video game publisher, publisher. It has created a number of List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil' ...

/ Sunsoft survival horror game ''

Clock Tower 3 is a survival horror video game co-produced by Capcom and Sunsoft for the PlayStation 2. Released in 2002, it is the fourth installment in the Clock Tower (series), ''Clock Tower'' series, and the first and only video game directed by Japanese ...

'' (2002). Fukasaku announced he had

in September 2002. In late December 2002, shortly after filming began on '' Battle Royale II: Requiem'', he was hospitalized when his condition worsened. Fukasaku died at a Tokyo hospital on 12 January 2003, aged 72. Having directed only a single scene, his son, Kenta took over the film.

Filmography

Episodes of television series

*''

Key Hunter is a prime-time Japanese television detective series. It aired on Saturday nights in the 9:00–9:56 p.m. time slot on the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) network from April 6, 1968 to April 7, 1973. There were a total of 262 episodes, and i ...

'' (1968) - Episodes 1 and 2 *''

Hissatsu Shikakenin is a Japanese television ''jidaigeki'' or period drama that was broadcast in 1972–1973. It was the first in the Hissatsu series and is based on Shōtarō Ikenami's novel ''Shiokinin Fujieda Baian''. Ken Ogata played Fujieda Baian. Episode 1, ...

'' (1972) - Episodes 1, 2, and 24 *''

G-Men '75 was a long-running prime-time popular television detective series in Japan. It aired on Saturday nights in the 9:00–9:54 p.m. time slot on the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) network from May 24, 1975 to April 3, 1982. A sequel, ''G-Men ' ...

'' (1975-1979) - Episodes 16, 20, 85, and 354 *''

The Yagyu Conspiracy is a Japanese television jidaigeki (period drama) that was broadcast from 1978 to 1979. It is adapted from the 1978 film ''Shogun's Samurai'' starring Sonny Chiba, who reprises his role in the series. Plot After the death of Tokugawa Hidetada, h ...

'' (1978) - Episode 1 *'' Shadow Warriors'' (1981) - Season 2, Episode 1

Video game

*''

'' (2002)

Awards

*1974 Kinema Junpo Reader's Choice Award for Best Film - '' Battles Without Honor and Humanity'' *1976 Blue Ribbon Award for Best Director - '' Graveyard of Honor'', ''

'' *1982

Hochi Film Award The are film-specific prizes awarded by the ''Hochi Shimbun , previously known as , is a Japanese-language daily sports newspaper. In 2002, it had a circulation of a million copies a day. It is an affiliate newspaper of ''Yomiuri Shimbun''. ...

for Best Film - ''

'' *1983

Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year The of the Japan Academy Film Prize The , often called the Japan Academy Prize, the Japan Academy Awards, and the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series of awards given annually since 1978 by the Japan Academy Film Prize Association (日本ア� ...

- ''Fall Guy'', ''

Dotonbori River , also released as ''Lovers Lost'', is a 1982 Japanese film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. The title refers to the area of Dōtonbori. Plot A nineteen-year-old aspiring painter named Kunihiko Yasuoka meets a woman when her dog Kotaro knocks over hi ...

'' *1983 Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Blue Ribbon Award for Best Film - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Blue Ribbon Award for Best Director - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Mainichi Film Award for Best film - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Mainichi Film Award for Best Director - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Mainichi Film Award Reader's Choice Award - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Kinema Junpo Reader's Choice Award for Best Film - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Kinema Junpo Reader's Choice Award for Best Director - ''Fall Guy'' *1983 Kinema Junpo Reader's Choice Award for Best Film - ''Fall Guy'' *1985 Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year - '' Legend of the Eight Samurai'', ''

Shanghai Rhapsody is a 1984 Japanese musical drama film directed by Kinji Fukasaku, adopted from the 1979 musical with the same name. It received multiple nominations at the 8th Japan Academy Film Prize, including Director of the Year and Outstanding Performanc ...

'' *1987 Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year - '' House on Fire'' *1987 Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year - ''House on Fire'' *1987 Kinema Junpo Reader's Choice Award for Best Film - ''House on Fire'' *1993

Yokohama Film Festival The is an annual awards ceremony held in Yokohama, Japan. Ten films are chosen as the best of the year and various awards are given to personnel. The first festival, held on February 3, 1980, was a small affair by fans and film critics. In 1994, ...

Special Prize - career *1994

Nikkan Sports Film Award The are film-specific prizes awarded solely by the ''Nikkan Sports''. Categories *Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Film, Best Film *Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Foreign Film, Best Foreign Film *Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Director ...

for Best Director - ''

Crest of Betrayal ''Crest of Betrayal'', known in Japan as , is a 1994 Japanese film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Written by Motomu Furuta and Fukasaku, it combines two enduring Japanese legends; ''Chūshingura'', which tells the story of the historical forty-seven ...

'' *1995 Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year - ''Crest of Betrayal'' *1995 Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year - ''Crest of Betrayal'' *1999 Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Director - ''

The Geisha House is a 1998 film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Plot In 1958, the Anti-Prostitution Law is about to be implemented. A young maiko named Tokiko works at Fujinoya Geisha House under Madam Satoe with the geisha Terucho, Kimiryo, and Somemaru. Over ...

'' *2001 Japan Academy Prize Popularity Award - '' Battle Royale'' *2001 Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year (Nomination) - ''Battle Royale'' *2001 Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year (Nomination) - ''Battle Royale'' *2001 Blue Ribbon Award for Best Film - ''Battle Royale'' *2001

Sitges Film Festival The Sitges Film Festival ( ca, Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya, links=no) is an annual film festival held in Sitges, Spain, specialized in fantasy and horror films, of which it is considered one of the world's foremost in ...

for Best Film (Nomination) - ''Battle Royale'' *2001 San Sebastián Horror & Fantasy Film Festival Audience Award for Best Feature Film - ''Battle Royale'' *2003 Japan Academy Prize Special Award - career *2003 Blue Ribbon Award Special Award - career *2004 Mainichi Film Award Special Award - career

References

External links

* *
Interview with Kinji Fukasaku
at Midnight Eye {{DEFAULTSORT:Fukasaku, Kinji 1930 births 2003 deaths Deaths from prostate cancer People from Mito, Ibaraki Japanese film directors Samurai film directors Yakuza film directors Science fiction film directors Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year winners Deaths from cancer in Japan Nihon University alumni Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon