Yūzō Kayama

Yūzō Kayama

Born: April 11, 1937
in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Yūzō Kayama (加山 雄三 Kayama Yūzō) is a Japanese popular musician and film star, born on 11 April 1937. His father, Ken Uehara, was a film star during the 1930s. Yuzo Kayama became a big star in the 1960s in the Wakadaishō (Young Guy) film series.

He showed his ability for drama when Akira Kurosawa cast him for his 1965 film, Red Beard, starring Toshirō Mifune. Kayama reported that he found the two years spent making this film the most difficult, but proudest work of his life.

As a guitarist, he took inspiration from the American instrumental group The Ventures, and performed a form of psychedelic surf music in the 1960s with his Mosrite guitar. One of his best-known instrumentals is "Black Sand Beach". "Kimi to Itsumademo" ("Love Forever"), another of his compositions, sold over two million copies, and was awarded a gold disc in 1965. At that point it was the biggest selling disc in the Japanese recording industry's history.

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Movies for Yūzō Kayama...

Mr. Moonlight: The Beatles Budokan Performance 1966 - A Dream We Had Together
Title: Mr. Moonlight: The Beatles Budokan Performance 1966 - A Dream We Had Together
Released: January 27, 2023
Type: Movie
The documentary about how Beatles went popular in Japan and did a concert in Budokan back in 1966.
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Chigasaki Story - My Little Hometown
Title: Chigasaki Story - My Little Hometown
Released: June 7, 2017
Type: Movie
Chigasaki is a land of entertainment, which produces many entertainers. Junichi Miyaji is a record collector and promoter of western pop music. Shinichi Nakazawa is an anthropologist. They search for the secret of reason why Chigasaki produces so many entertainers.
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Messengers
Title: Messengers
Character: Makoto Shimano
Released: August 21, 1999
Type: Movie
Naomi Shimizu is a young career woman working for Enrico Dandolo, an Italian fashion house. That is until one day the company declares bankruptcy. Accustomed to living in luxury she tries to make a run for it with the last remaining company asset, a red Alpha Romeo sports car. Unfortunately she recklessly collides with an bicycle messenger. Lacking any funds to pay for a settlement, she end up having to work as a bicycle messenger.
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Thunderbolt
Title: Thunderbolt
Character: Coach Mirakami
Released: September 8, 1995
Type: Movie
In order to release his kidnapped sister, sports car mechanic Jackie Chan has to beat a super-criminal street racer.
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Title: As If In Flight
Character: Shimazu Nariakira
Released: January 7, 1990
Type: TV
Historical drama about the life of Saigō Takamori and his involvement with the Meiji Restoration.
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The Detective
Title: The Detective
Character: Isao Muramatsu
Released: September 22, 1984
Type: Movie
Detective Muramatsu's wife, Fusae, is killed by a drug addict. After the criminal climbs to the roof of the house with a hostage, Muramatsu shoots him dead in order to rescue the hostage, but the public denounces his actions as stemming from the personal grudge of a detective whose wife was just murdered, and he is demoted.
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Zero
Title: Zero
Character: Manbei Shimokawa
Released: August 11, 1984
Type: Movie
Two young men are recruited into the Japanese air force just before outbreak of WW2 by the test pilot of Japans new super fighter - the Zero. The movie is told in reverse from the point of one of the young men who don't qualify for the pilot training and instead joins the ground crew. It chronicles the entire history of the famous fighter from the first prototype test flights all through the war.
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Title: 大追跡
Released: April 4, 1978
Type: TV
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Mount Hakkoda
Title: Mount Hakkoda
Character: Captain Kurata
Released: June 4, 1977
Type: Movie
Two infantry regiments of the Imperial Japanese Army—210 men overall—tackled Mt. Hakkoda in the winter of 1902 to prepare for war with Russia.
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ESPY
Title: ESPY
Character: Hojo
Released: December 28, 1974
Type: Movie
The film deals with the recruitment of race car driver Jiro Miki (Masao Kusakari) and his dog, Caesar, to a group of people who use ESP, psychokinesis, and other special mental abilities to fight crime.
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Red Target
Title: Red Target
Character: Akira Hino
Released: April 5, 1972
Type: Movie
A gunslinger is hired to kill a news photographer. The young ward of the shot photographer discovers the set-up behind the killing - that a laboratory is being set up by a Nazi organization to capture and train talented youth and that the photographer was about to expose it.
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The Battle of Okinawa
Title: The Battle of Okinawa
Released: August 14, 1971
Type: Movie
The Americans are swiftly closing on Okinawa, an island just south of the Japanese mainland. The Imperial command sends top generals and several army divisions to defend it at all costs. The mission quickly degenerates as vital resources and troops are diverted to other islands. After a civilian evacuation ends in tragedy most of non-combatants are forced to remain on the island. Many convert to soldier status. Tokyo sends mixed messages that squander time and resources, as when they order the defenders to build an airstrip for aircraft that never come. The truth soon becomes obvious: the high command decides that the island cannot be held and effectively abandons the Okinawan defenders. When the Americans land many troops are deployed in the wrong places. As the slaughter mounts, a suicidal attitude takes hold. Okinawa becomes a death trap, for civilian volunteers and non-combatants as well.
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Detective Story: A Brother's Rule
Title: Detective Story: A Brother's Rule
Released: March 6, 1971
Type: Movie
Iwabuchi of the Metropolitan Police Department's Investigation Division cooperates with Kubo of the Foreign Affairs Division in re-investigating the case of a foreign drug addict's death at the request of Kubo.
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The Militarists
Title: The Militarists
Character: Goro Arai
Released: September 11, 1970
Type: Movie
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Bravo, Young Guy
Title: Bravo, Young Guy
Released: May 27, 1970
Type: Movie
A film by Katsumi Iwauchi.
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The Creature Called Man
Title: The Creature Called Man
Character: Toda
Released: April 4, 1970
Type: Movie
A top police-guard, charged with protecting a visiting politician and ruthless dictator, contends with an assassin set to kill the man.
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Duel at Fort Ezo
Title: Duel at Fort Ezo
Character: Saburota Edo
Released: February 9, 1970
Type: Movie
1864. Samurai Shinbei is sent in a secret mission to Ezo, in the North of Japan, to stop riots of villagers commanded by Jirozaemon. A Russian count's daughter, the village leader's daughter and a secret treasure add up to the adventure.
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Bullet Wound
Title: Bullet Wound
Released: September 10, 1969
Type: Movie
Yuzo Kayama is an American-Japanese operative working for the US to uncover an arms deal between an American seller and Chinese communists, and to take out both parties. After almost getting assassinated himself, he takes a wounded civilian with him despite living in a world where no one can be trusted.
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Battle of the Japan Sea
Title: Battle of the Japan Sea
Character: Cmdr. Hirose
Released: August 1, 1969
Type: Movie
Japan and Russia clash in what comes to be known as the Russo-Japanese War. An attempt by the Japanese fleet and army to take Port Arthur fails, and a Russian fleet bears down on the Sea of Japan. Admiral Heihachiro Togo sends his fleet to confront the Russians, with results which stun both nations. Meanwhile, Major Genjiro Akashi makes secret negotiations with the Bolshevik revolutionaries in Russia, negotiations that have repercussions far beyond the conflict at hand.
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Futari no Koibito
Title: Futari no Koibito
Released: April 12, 1969
Type: Movie
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Sun Above, Death Below
Title: Sun Above, Death Below
Released: November 23, 1968
Type: Movie
Suspense drama about an assassin charged with breaking up a gold smuggling ring, and the contract subsequently purchased against him and his employer.
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Young Challengers
Title: Young Challengers
Character: Oshiba Records singer
Released: October 12, 1968
Type: Movie
A story depicting the challenges faced by today's youth in working to build a better tomorrow, based on the theme of Toshiba's progress as one of Japan's leading manufacturers of electronic and electric goods.
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My Brother, My Love
Title: My Brother, My Love
Character: Teppei Kitagawa
Released: September 7, 1968
Type: Movie
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Admiral Yamamoto
Title: Admiral Yamamoto
Character: First Lieutenant Ijuin
Released: August 14, 1968
Type: Movie
As Japan joins in a political pact with Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is appointed supreme commander of the Japanese fleet. With Japan headed inexorably toward war, Yamamoto, despite his misgivings, believes the only possible victory lies in destroying the American fleet by surprise at Pearl Harbor. The attack succeeds, but fails to sink the American carrier fleet. Thus Yamamoto must lead the Japanese navy into war with ever-diminishing likelihood of success.
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Good-bye Moscow
Title: Good-bye Moscow
Character: The Promoter
Released: March 27, 1968
Type: Movie
Ex-jazz pianist turned promoter finds he is successful, but empty. When an entrepreneur sends him to Moscow with a jazz combo, he falls in with the dissident youth of the city, and again finds life empty.
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Two in the Shadow
Title: Two in the Shadow
Character: Shiro Mishima
Released: November 18, 1967
Type: Movie
A man is involved in a fatal car accident, and though he is blameless, his company transfers him to a remote branch in a small town. Before he leaves, he gives the man's widow a large sum of money that she uses to move back to her hometown.
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Japan's Longest Day
Title: Japan's Longest Day
Character: Morio Tateno - NHK Broadcaster
Released: August 12, 1967
Type: Movie
Following the detonation of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese military and the government clash over the demand from the Allies for unconditional surrender. Minister of the Army Anami leads the military officers who propose to fight on, even to the death of every Japanese citizen. Emperor Hirohito, however, joins with his ministers in asking the unthinkable, the peaceful surrender of Japan. When the military plots a coup to overthrow the Emperor's civilian government, Anami must face the choice between his desires and loyalty to his Emperor.
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The Young Ace in the South Pacific
Title: The Young Ace in the South Pacific
Character: Yuichi Tanuma
Released: July 1, 1967
Type: Movie
The 10th film in the Wakadaisho series, the Young Ace Yuichi Tanuma travels to Hawaii to train in deep-sea navigation. The Young Ace comes to the rescue of various women in peril, teaches a would-be restauranteur how to make sukiyaki, thwarts the romantic aspirations of his rival Ao Daisho, and competes in the finals of the Japan Judo Championship at the Nippon Budokan. Shot across various locations across Hawaii, Tahiti, Saipan, and Tokyo.
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Las Vegas Free-For-All
Title: Las Vegas Free-For-All
Released: April 28, 1967
Type: Movie
The Crazy Cats, a Japanese musical-comedy group, were showcased a series of comic adventures throughout the 1960s. Las Vegas Free-For-All, one of their most popular movies, featured scenes filmed on location in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Hawaii. Appearing with the seven Cats were the lovely Mie Hama and such Japanese musical artists as The Peanuts, The Johnnys, The Drifters, and Jackie Yoshikawa & the Blue Comets.
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Zoku izuko e
Title: Zoku izuko e
Released: April 12, 1967
Type: Movie
Sequel to "真実の愛情を求めて 何処へ" (1954). A coming-of-age drama adapted from the novel by Yojiro Ishizaka.
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Let's Go! Young Guy
Title: Let's Go! Young Guy
Character: Yuuichi Tanuma
Released: January 1, 1967
Type: Movie
College student Yuuichi Tanuma is fired up for Nationals where his university Kyonan will face off against their rivals, Seihoku. Yuuichi has his sights set on winning football gold, but his father, who wants him to take over his sukiyaki restaurant, isn't too keen on this. Set in Kyoto, Hong Kong, and Macau, we follow Yuuichi as he falls in love and chases after his dreams.
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Come Marry Me
Title: Come Marry Me
Character: Tamotsu Suyama
Released: November 20, 1966
Type: Movie
Masako is a humble waitress who has a chance encounter with playboy Tamotsu. With the aid of his sister, Tamotsu seeks to win Masako's affection despite the disapproval of his wealthy parents and Masako's own feelings towards the working-class cabbie Noro.
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Forever With You
Title: Forever With You
Character: Yuzo Kayama
Released: September 10, 1966
Type: Movie
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Zero Fighter
Title: Zero Fighter
Released: July 13, 1966
Type: Movie
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Arupusu no wakadaishô
Title: Arupusu no wakadaishô
Character: Yuichi Tanuma
Released: May 28, 1966
Type: Movie
Seventh movie of the Wakadaishō series directed by Kengo Furusawa
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The Sword of Doom
Title: The Sword of Doom
Character: Hyoma Utsuki
Released: February 25, 1966
Type: Movie
Ryunosuke, a gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, has no moral code and kills without remorse. It’s a way of life that leads to madness.
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Campus A Go-Go
Title: Campus A Go-Go
Character: Yuichi Tanuma
Released: December 19, 1965
Type: Movie
Young Guy (Kayama) competes in an electric guitar competition and plays American-style football. Released alongside Invasion of Astro Monster.
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Young Guy at Sea
Title: Young Guy at Sea
Character: 田沼真一(若大将)
Released: August 8, 1965
Type: Movie
Eternal young guy, Yuzo Kayama stars in this fifth installment of the Young Guy series. Young Guy returns to the swim team from the first movie, boards his rival Blue Guy's boat, and meets a young woman on a small island.
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Sanshiro Sugata
Title: Sanshiro Sugata
Character: Sanshiro Sugata
Released: May 29, 1965
Type: Movie
Remake of Kurosawa's films Sanshiro Sugata and Sanshiro Sugata part 2. A young man, Sanshiro Sugata, troubled by personal problems, takes up judo. His teacher, Shogoro Yano, is a devout man who has aroused the enmity of the local practitioners of jujitsu, the older and more accepted of the two sports. Sugata uses his newly learned prowess to gain a measure of respect from others; however, Shogoro insists that the sport has a spiritual side, a lesson Sugata has yet to learn. Eventually, in hand-to-hand combat with the father of a young woman he loves, he comes to understand the true meaning of judo.
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Red Beard
Title: Red Beard
Character: Dr. Noboru Yasumoto
Released: April 3, 1965
Type: Movie
Aspiring to an easy job as personal physician to a wealthy family, Noboru Yasumoto is disappointed when his first post after medical school takes him to a small country clinic under the gruff doctor Red Beard. Yasumoto rebels in numerous ways, but Red Beard proves a wise and patient teacher. He gradually introduces his student to the unglamorous side of the profession, ultimately assigning him to care for a prostitute rescued from a local brothel.
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Yearning
Title: Yearning
Character: Koji Morita
Released: January 15, 1964
Type: Movie
War widow Reiko rebuilds and runs the grocery shop in the house of her husband's family. Many years later, their business is threatened by a newly built supermarket and Reiko's in-laws plan to convert their small shop into a supermarket, to her detriment.
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The Sun is Calling You
Title: The Sun is Calling You
Released: September 29, 1963
Type: Movie
A man with a dark past comes from Tokyo to the fishing port of Izu, and tries to begin a new life as a fisherman.
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The Young Ace in Hawaii
Title: The Young Ace in Hawaii
Character: 若大将
Released: August 11, 1963
Type: Movie
Fourth entry in Toho's Wakadaishō series directed by Jun Fukuda and released on a simultaneous screening with Matango. Filmed on location in Hawaii.
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Siege of Fort Bismarck
Title: Siege of Fort Bismarck
Released: May 29, 1963
Type: Movie
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Warring Clans
Title: Warring Clans
Character: Ochi Kittan "Batta"
Released: March 23, 1963
Type: Movie
A brave, highly principled warrior resigns his post as a body guard to the head of a powerful clan after he learns that his employers have been smuggling arms to the enemy. The remaining samurai try in vain to coerce him back, but their efforts are thwarted by crooked warriors who launch an attack...
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Attack Squadron
Title: Attack Squadron
Character: Captain Shiro Taki
Released: January 3, 1963
Type: Movie
Lt. Col. Senda resists the idea of sending Japanese fighter pilots on suicide missions. He believes that what is really necessary for Japan to regain momentum in the war is for the air force to gather its most brilliant pilots into an elite squadron and use the unit to pinpoint attacks on the Americans. Disrespected by the kamikaze pilots who think the "non-suicidal" pilots are afraid, the unit redeems itself by stunning victories. But success leads the military leaders to expect too much of the unit, and new orders portend disaster.
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Born in Sin
Title: Born in Sin
Released: November 23, 1962
Type: Movie
A dark family secret sends a 21-year-old French student (Hoshi) on a journey of self-discovery.
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47 Ronin
Title: 47 Ronin
Character: Lord Naganori Asano
Released: November 3, 1962
Type: Movie
After their lord is tricked into committing ritual suicide, forty-seven samurai warriors await the chance to avenge their master and reclaim their honor.
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Mount Hakone
Title: Mount Hakone
Released: September 15, 1962
Type: Movie
Japanese drama.
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College Champ
Title: College Champ
Character: Yuichi Tanuma
Released: July 14, 1962
Type: Movie
Yuuichi Tanuma, our young hero, is a senior at Kyonan University and captain of the marathon team. His parents run a sukiyaki restaurant back in his hometown. When his allowance stops coming in, Yuuichi moves back in with his folks to work part-time. He has his eyes set on nationals in the fall, until one day he runs into a young woman who's fallen into trouble with the Lightning Gang...
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Operation Sewer Rats
Title: Operation Sewer Rats
Character: Hayashi
Released: June 1, 1962
Type: Movie
Towards the end of World War II, five men are tasked with freeing the son of a general from Chinese captivity.
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The Crimson Sky
Title: The Crimson Sky
Released: March 21, 1962
Type: Movie
1962 Japanese movie
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Pride of the Campus
Title: Pride of the Campus
Character: Yuichi Tanuma (Wakadaisho)
Released: February 10, 1962
Type: Movie
Young Yuichi (Kayama) romances Sumiko (Hoshi) while helping out at his family's restaurant, singing in a band, and preparing for an important boxing tournament.
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Sanjuro
Title: Sanjuro
Character: Iori Izaka
Released: January 1, 1962
Type: Movie
Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Kurosawa's tightly paced, beautifully composed "Sanjuro." In this companion piece and sequel to "Yojimbo," jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan's evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear.
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Different Sons
Title: Different Sons
Character: Shoji Akagi
Released: November 12, 1961
Type: Movie
In the middle of the period of high economic growth in Japan, a family is thrown into disarray over work, money, and romance. Their father's sudden unemployment later in life causes friction among the siblings of the Akagi family. Kensuke, a salaryman at a top company, refuses to support his parents while his brother, Shoji, determines to care for them despite only working as a taxi driver. The concern over money affects Noriko's own love life as she courts a wealthy salaryman to the chagrin of her mechanic boyfriend.
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Blood on the Sea
Title: Blood on the Sea
Released: August 13, 1961
Type: Movie
Four fishermen friends are caught up in a piracy plot.
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Sir Galahad in Campus
Title: Sir Galahad in Campus
Character: Yuichi Tanuma (Wakadaisho)
Released: July 8, 1961
Type: Movie
The first instalment in Toho's popular Wakadaishō (Young Guy) series.
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Big Shots Die at Dawn
Title: Big Shots Die at Dawn
Character: Jiro
Released: April 9, 1961
Type: Movie
An early Okamoto yakuza film, though it's not in the Underworld series (along with The Last Gunfight and The Big Boss) despite being alternatively known as "Death of the Boss." While Okamoto did not write this film and took on the project because he was assigned and "just doing [his] job" according to an interview with Chris Desjardins in Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film, he did express a general excitement about working in action cinema (which shows through in this film's energy.)
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Happiness of Us Alone
Title: Happiness of Us Alone
Character: Akira
Released: January 15, 1961
Type: Movie
The story is of two people. One is deaf, the other deaf and mute. They marry after meeting at a school reunion, and the film follows their trials and tribulations ... and joys.
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Blueprint of Murder
Title: Blueprint of Murder
Character: Jirô Kusaka
Released: January 3, 1961
Type: Movie
Yuzo Kayama plays the protagonist, a whale-hunting cannon manufactuing supervisor, whose brother is an automobile tester for Komatsu Motors which has a fatal accident. As his brother investigates the "Accident" with his old college friend (makoto Sato), now a reporter... They stumble across murder, espionage and cover-ups. High-class night club, femme fatale, and a "Blueprint of Murder" all adds up to a bigger plot then first expected.
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Westward Desperado
Title: Westward Desperado
Released: October 30, 1960
Type: Movie
In this patriotic WW II drama, the Japanese army demonstrates its courage and willingness to do anything to win as they endeavor to sneak into Communist China to bring back the flag of a defeated enemy regiment.
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Man Against Man
Title: Man Against Man
Character: Toshio Masue
Released: August 14, 1960
Type: Movie
Kikumori runs a cabaret on the docks, while his friend Kaji operates transport boats. When a gang of drug dealers tries to force the pair to cooperate in a smuggling scheme, conflict arises between the two friends. Falsely blamed for murder, Kikumori is blackmailed into an attempt to sabotage Kaji's boats and kill him. But the friendship between the two men proves an obstacle to the gangleader's plans.