Hokuriku Proxy War (Blu-ray)

The final entry in Kinji Fukasaku’s celebrated sequence of jitsuroku eiga — fact-based yakuza pictures drawn from real criminal records — plunges into the 1960s underworld of the Hokuriku region as rival gangs wage a bloody proxy war financed by mainland syndicates. Featuring some of the strongest women’s roles in Fukasaku’s entire career, the film centres on a raucous, larger-than-life performance by Hiroki Matsukata, with legendary genre star Sonny Chiba in powerful support.

Presented in a new 2K restoration supplied directly by Toei, this Radiance Films limited edition — limited to 3,000 copies — brings one of the great director’s final genre statements to Blu-ray for the first time.

• Japan
• 98 min
• Color
• 2.35:1
• Japanese
• 1977

Special features

- New 2K restoration from the original 35mm negative, supplied by Toei
- Audio commentary by Japanese cinema scholar Tom Mes
- Video essay on Fukasaku’s jitsuroku eiga cycle
- Original Japanese theatrical trailer
- Illustrated booklet with new essay
- Limited to 3,000 copies worldwide