Arrow Video Blu-ray Synopsis: On the same year that she defined the action heroine with her role in the Female Prisoner Scorpion series, Japanese screen legend Meiko Kaji teamed up with future Sister Street Fighter director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi for a diptych of gambling, deception and violence set on the mean streets of 1970s' Tokyo: Wandering Ginza Butterfly and its sequel She Cat Gambler! The first film sees Kaji's character Nami “The Red Cherry Blosson” returning to her old stomping ground in the seedy Tokyo district of Ginza after a stint in prison for killing a yakuza boss. She soon settles in, living in her uncle's pool hall and working at the local hostess club. But when the ruthless yakuza Owada (Koji Nanbara, 11 Samurai) attempts to take control of the club, Nami and her uncle devise a plan to take him down. In the sequel, Kaji is paired up with the equally legendary Sonny Chiba at his most charismatic as the streetwise Ryuji, who takes a shine to Nami and decides to help her on her quest to avenge her father. Together they'll comb through every seedy gambling den and lowlife ruffian of the Ginza underworld until Nami finally zeroes in on her prey. Meiko Kaji is magnetic as the steely and righteous Nami, whose foray into Tokyo's sordid back alleys is brought to life by Yamaguchi's energetic direction in this electric spectacle of 1970s Japanese crime cinema. (86/86 Mins)

 

Views: Currently restored in HD and release as a beautiful collection by Arrow Video in the UK, the Wandering Ginza Butterfly films make a fun addition to the plethora of early 70s Toei Yakuza-crime flicks that have been pumped-out here in the UK over the last lot of years. Telling the story of the feisty Nami, who goes head-to-head with the Yakuza in gambling dens, on snooker tables, and through the streets of Ginza, things take a turn for the worst when the former criminal adds vengeance to the list. In part one, she finds work as a club hostess in Ginza to support a sick woman that once bailed her out. But when the bar is threatened by a local Yakuza boss, Nami steps up to get involved and put a stop to the gangsters wrong-doings. In part two, She-Cat Gambler, Nami retreads a similar journey, returning to Ginza in search of the man who killed her father so that she can seek revenge. Once again, she is joined by Higashi Ryuji who aids her in her fight for vengeance!

 

Playing like a modern-day adaptation of the fantastic Red Peony Gambler (1968) series, Wandering Ginza Butterfly and its sequel are two pretty entertaining pieces from praised director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi – his next series of films after making his debut with the four Delinquent Girl Boss (1970) titles. Of course, the first Yamaguchi film I had ever seen (and fell in love with), was the fabulous Sister Street Fighter (1974) that came a couple of years after this which was quickly followed by Sister Street Fighter: Hanging by a Thread the same year, and aside from A Haunted Turkish Bathhouse in 1975, would deliver a strong slate of Shin'ichi 'Sonny' Chiba and Etsuko 'Sue' Shihomi titles such as Wolf Guy, Champion of Death, Return of the Sister Street Fighter, and Karate Bear Fighter that same year, going onto direct the likes of Karate Warriors (1976), Kurata – His Fist is Death/The Young Tiger (1976), Karate for Life (1977) and The Circuit Wolf (1977); a live-action adaptation of the popular manga that shared one too many similarities to the fantastic Speed Racer. Produced through Toei, the Wandering Ginza Butterfly films were just two of many Yakuza flicks from them around this time, but each certainly have their own appeal, with part two offering a little more comedy than the first as well as the addition of a cinematic action legend...

 

The beautiful and much loved Meiko Kaji leads the way as the titular heroine, oozing her usual feisty charm as the vengeful young Nami and handling her action scenes in style, as she had done many times before. Of course, prior to this, Kaji had starred in over 60 titles by the time Wandering Ginza Butterfly had come about, which included Teruo Ishii's fantastic Blind Woman's Curse (1970) – but this prolific actress definitely became more widely known for her role in the Stray Cat Rock Series (1970), before impressing again and again after this when she appeared in Lady Snowblood (1973) and it's sequel, and starred as another character called Nami in the hugely popular Female Prisoner Scorpion #701 (1972) film series that still stands as some of her finest. In Wandering Ginza Butterfly, Kaji is joined by the great Tsunehiko Watase who stars (in one of his earliest roles) as her friend and aid Ryuji. Going onto star in classics like Battles Without Honor & Humanity (1973) and it's sequel, The Rapacious Jailbreaker (1974), New Battles Without Honor & Humanity (1974), Virus (1980), Sailor Suit and Machine Gun (1981) and more, Watase does a fantastic job but is oddly replaced by the legendary Sonny Chiba for Wandering Ginza Butterfly 2: She-Cat Gambler – with the two later co-starring in Kinji Fukasaku's The Fall of Ako Castle (1978) and Kosei Saito's G.I. Samurai (1979). In the years leading up to this, of course, both Meiko and Chiba had shared the screen a few times already, and I have to admit it was great seeing him alongside her in the sequel. He carries a certain charm and charisma when on-screen, and it's hard to find a title of his where he doesn't entertain. All are joined by a strong cast including the likes of Akiko Koyama, Yayoi Watanabe, Koji Nanbara, Junzaburo Ban, Shingo Yamashiro and more. While action fans may be disappointed with the lack of action in both films for the majority of their running time, it's worth noting that each of the grand finales certainly make-up for that their violent showdowns – especially in part two as both Meiko and Chiba go wild.

 

Accompanying the new restorations are a host of bonus features starting with a fun and energetic audio commentary from Patrick Macias and Matt Alt; hosts of the Pure TokyoScope Podcast who deliver a informative and enjoyable piece that sometimes sounds like a PG recording of a Howard Stern radio show. For those that prefer their audio commentaries a little slower and serious, an archival audio commentary with the soft spoken Chris D is also available. Pure TokyoScope hosts, Patrick and Matt, return to deliver a video appreciation on Wandering Ginza Butterfly 2: She-Cat Gambler – giving us a fun 21 minute piece on the film and those involved, as well as brief mentions of other titles from around this period. Genre Mill Memories is a 37 minute archival interview with director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi which made for a very interesting watch. Equally enjoyable is the 11 minute archival appreciation video on actress Meiko Kaji,delivered by filmmaker J-Taro Sugisaku who was clearly a big fan. And finally, we get two newly restored versions of the original theatrical trailers which were fun to see. All-in-all, the Wandering Ginza Butterfly Collection is another wonderfully packed an entertaining release from Arrow Video!

 

Overall: Another fun slice of early 70s Yakuza Japanese cinema, the Wandering Ginza Butterfly movies carry a certain charm that still works well today!

 

Arrow Video Blu-ray Extras: Audio Commentary by Patrick Macias and Matt Alt, Archival Audio Commentary by Chris D., Interview with Patrick Macias and Matt Alt on She-Cat Gambler, Archival Interview with Director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi, Archival Appreciation of Meiko Kaji by J-Taro Sugisaku, Trailers