The picture's story is almost ritualistic in its familiarity. After spending the last several years in jail, world-weary gangster Miyamoto (Michitaro Mizushima), recovers a trio of marble-sized diamonds hidden deep in Tokyo's sewer system. He intends to quickly dispose of the hot rocks and give the money to Mihara (Toru Abe), crippled in the botched heist and reduced to eking out a living running an oden stand. Miyamoto's old gang is soon overcome with greed, however, and a deal to sell the diamonds to a shady American (the ubiquitous Harold S. Conway) goes wrong with Mihara swallowing the gems before falling to his death. As Mihara is mourned by his no-good, JD sister, Akiko (Mari Shiraki), Miyamoto and the gangsters try to figure a way to retrieve the diamonds before an autopsy is conducted or the body cremated.

Underworld Beauty greatly benefits from Inui Saji's taut script (based on his story), a model of B-picture construction. The tension and suspense flow naturally as the diamonds change hands and tucked away in some ingenious hiding spot (like inside the clay bosom of a newly-made mannequin) before being lost again in some ironic fashion. Mizushima's older, experienced gangster trying to right an old wrong would be cliched by the 1970s but, perhaps, was relatively fresh in 1958. Suzuki would soon become identified with a new generation of Nikkatsu stars like Joe Shishido and Akira Kobayashi, but beefy Mizushima (whom Akiko refers to as "old man") has a kind of Koji Tsuruta, Old School charm. Akiko is by far the only thing like a real character in the picture. She's childlike in her selfishness and ruthlessness, cruel and sexy, unlovable and unloved. Also good is Kaku Takashima as Osawa, an especially toady henchman. Besides Conway, Norman French appears as a lecherous sailor, while the well-known star Hideaki Nitani has an inconsequential role as a detective.

The picture is also of interest for its historical value alone -- Ritaro Nakao's cinematography captures a Japan 13 years after the end of World War II but still decades away from the "Economic Miracle" with its unbridled prosperity. This was one of Nikkatsu's first wide screen movies; Underworld Beauty being released about eight months after the introduction of the company's CinemaScope-compatible process. (The NikkatsuScope logo nearly overwhelms the frame as the picture begins.)

Suzuki takes full advantage of the process, cramming the 2.35:1 frame with action. Working with Nakao, Suzuki also captures the seediness of Yokohama (even the city's hospital has a grimy, unrefridgerated morgue), anticipating by five years Kurosawa's similar treatment of the city in High and Low (1963). The picture may be a pastiche, but it's a good one, with sewer scenes recalling The Third Man, a mannequin shop like the one in Killer's Kiss, and a diner straight out of The Killers. The film is also gritty without the over-the-top campiness of so many later Nikkatsu thrillers (fun as they are), though gang leader Oyane (Shinsuke Ashida) does inexplicably have a stuffed alligator mounted on an office wall.

Video & Audio

Home Vision presents Underworld Beauty in a decent 16:9 anamorphic transfer, with the opening titles windowboxed. It's a little on the grainy side, with some (what appears to be) water damage early on, and some further damage around the 30:45 mark, lasting a minute or so. The mono sound (listed in the Japanese titles as "Westrex Recording Sysem") is clear. The optional English subtitles are very good.

Extras

The only extra is what appears to be a complete list of titles directed by Seijun Suzuki. Nice to have, but not very useful.

Stuart Galbraith IV is a Los Angeles and Kyoto-based film historian whose work includes The Emperor and the Wolf -- The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune. He is presently writing a new book on Japanese cinema for Taschen.