Abashiri Prison: Continuation (1965) (Pt. 2)

Production: Toei
Color, Length: Color, 87 minutes
Director: Teruo Ishii
Actors: Ken Takakura, Kanjuro Arashi, Toru Abe, George Ai, Kunie Tanake

Review:
The first Abashiri Prison was such a huge success, Toei gave green light to series status the same year and Teruo Ishii got together with practically the same crew of Part 1 to shoot the first of totally 17 sequels. Ken Takakura was back as Shin’Ichi Tachibana, Kanjuro Arashi as Onitora, Toru Abe as the evil Yoda and even Kunie Tanake has a small stand in as the likeable wannabe Playboy-Gangster. Part 2 was shot in colour instead of the black and white of Part 1 and the location shifted from the Walls and Surroundings of the Abashiri Prison, to the not so glamorous cities of Hokkaido-District. There is also a change of tone in the story, which took a turn to broader humour. Something, that would be changed again in Part 3 (Abashiri Prison: Return to the wharf), that has a more melodramatic approach.

Abashiri Prison: Continuation should carry the subtitle “who’s got the loot?”, because the whole story concentrates on some diamonds stolen from a bank safe and smuggled in a replica algae. By mistake Shin’Ichi (Ken Takakura) gets his hands on a part of the loot, but somehow the Police seem to believe he has something to do with the robbery and the involved murder of a Policeman (which of course he hasn’t), what doesn’t make it easy for him to return the diamonds. Together with his bumbling Underling and a female Pickpocket, Jumi, he tries to get the man who is responsible for the Robbery and the Murders (besides the Policeman, a thief involved in the robbery and a woman working as a smuggler got murdered by the scrupulous Killer). To get things a little complicated a bunch of Strippers gets pulled into the story as well, which leads to even more confusion to all the parties involved. On his way to find out who pulled the strings behind the robbery, Shin’Ichi gets unexpected help from Onitora (Kanjuro Arashi), an Oyabun whom he already had met in Abashiri Prison and though Onitora (or Tora as friends call him) may be old, he still knows how to throw a good punch. But Onitora is not the only familiar face Shin’Ichi meets. As it turns out, the man behind it all is Yoda (Toru Abe), the evil Yakuza, who already had tried to break Shin’Ichi in Abashiri Prison. When Yoda captures Jumi, he tries to exchange her for the diamonds that are in Shin’Ichi’s care. And although Shin’Ichi is ready to put his own life on risk for her, the story takes another unexpected turn when a stranger comes to the rescue, which leads to a crazy rugby-like chase after the replica algae in the midst of a fire festival and ends in a mud fight between Shin’Ichi and Yoda.

The Abashiri Prison-Series hasn’t yet managed to spark the fire in me. But to be honest, Part 2 had me entertained non-stop. Probably my expectations were so low, that it couldn’t have disappointed me any more. And this charming little story about some stolen diamonds and the ensuing chaos reminded me of some of the better Gangster B-Movies from sixties I liked to watch on Sunday afternoons. And there were some scenes that really had some visual flair or at least interesting ideas behind them. Probably I’m too good to this movie, because the Plot had more holes, than the socks I wore when I still was a bachelor and there was some very bad acting. Not one for the Fukasaku-Crew and not necessary mandatory viewing, but if you don’t know what to do on a rainy Sunday afternoon, give this bugger a chance.

3 1/2 Katanas