Hayato Ichihara in 'Yakuza Apocalypse,' directed by Takashi Miike

‘Yakuza Apocalypse’ – Gangsters vs. vampires on Hulu

Yakuza Apocalypse (2015) – Takashi Miike, once the absurdly prolific wild man of Japanese cinema, earned a reputation for cranking out as many as four wildly inventive, full-throttle action, gonzo genre busting pictures a year. He’s slowed down as of late and even gone a little upscale; his 2011 13 Assassins (a collision of The […]

Riki Takeuchi and Sho Aikawa in Miike Takashi's Dead or Alive trilogy

Takashi Miike’s extreme ‘Dead or Alive’ trilogy on Amazon Prime

Takashi Miike made his reputation as Japan’s gonzo gun-for-hire, a genre madman who pumped manic energy and wild style into films he pushed to the extremes in every way, from violence to surreal twists. He once described himself as “an arranger, not an author.” Taking a cue from one of his own film titles, I […]